UNIVERSITY OF MUMBAI
INSTITUTE OF DISTANCE AND
OPEN LEARNING (IDOL)

STUDY MATERIAL

F.Y.B.Com

ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES

SYLLABUS
(w.e.f. 2009-2010)

 
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SYLLABUS
(w.e.f. 2009-10)

OBJECTIVES

1. To create an awareness of environmental perspective, both

natural and human, in Environmental studies.
2. To highlight functional links between environment, economy
and society and bring out the issues emerging from this
interface.
3. To expose the students to the emerging environmental issues,
both natural and human.
4. To sensitize the students towards measures that could be
taken to reduce and mitigate the environmental problems.
5. To acquaint students with relevant tools and techniques to
assess and analyze the environmental aspects.

Unit 1 - Environment: An overview

a) Environment - Structure and components - Typology - Natural

and Human
b) Ecosystem as part of Environment - Functioning and
Levels of Organization - Linkage with society and economy
c) Emerging issues of development - Environment as a
source and depository of resources, products and waste
d) Sustainable use of resource - a multidisciplinary approach
Importance of Environmental Studies.

Unit 2 - Natural Resources

a) Definition, importance and classification of natural resources

b) Resource rich and Resource poor regions - emerging gaps
c) Distribution patterns, utilization and conservation of water,
forest and energy resources

Unit 3 - Population and Environment

a) Man environment relationship - Changing patterns - Role of

technology.
b) Contemporary trends of growth and distribution of world
population.
c) Challenges of population growth, Carrying capacity of
Environment -Human Development Index as a measure of
development - Patterns of human development in India
b) Environment and human health (a case study)

 
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Unit 4 - Food and environment

a) Sources and areas of production of food in the world

(Agriculture, Fishing, Livestock-rearing)
b) Pattern of food trade
c) Food Security and Global patterns of nutrition and hunger

Unit 5 - Secondary and Tertiary Sectors

a) Bases of spatial interaction - Role of Transport and

Telecommunication technology - Time and Space convenience
b) Changing nature of manufacturing and services in
developed and developing countries.
c) Tourism as emerging service - New tourism (Eco-tourism,
medical tourism, etc) - Challenges before India
d) Impact of tourism - economic, socio-cultural and environmental

Unit 6 – Disasters: Natural and Man-made

a) Concepts of Disaster - Natural and Man-made

b) Natural hazard / Disasters: Causes and Consequences -
Earthquake & Tsunami, Cyclone, Flood & Drought (a case
study)
c) Man-made disasters: Causes and Consequences - nuclear
accident, Oil spill and leakage, Industrial accidents (a case
study)
d) Disaster Management Cycle - Pre-disaster, disaster occurrence
and post-disaster - Role of technology

Unit 7 - Environmental Issues and Movements

a) Environmental problems - Causes and Effects
b) Global issues - Global climate changes, Trans-boundary
movement of .hazardous waste, Threats to Biodiversity (a case
study)
c) Regional issues - Acid rain, Desertification (a case study)
d) Local issues - related to CRZ implementation, Solid waste
disposal (garbage, bio-medical waste, e-waste), Flooding of low
lying areas, Special Economic Zone ( a case study)
e) Major environmental movements in India - Role of public
opinion in environmental protection - Green Business and
Green Consumption

 
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Unit 8 - Environmental Management

a) Environmental management - concept & need - relevance of

Environmental education
b) Constitutional and legal provisions in India - International efforts
towards environmental protection - role of WTO
c) Environmental Statement, ISO 14000, ISO 16000,
Environmental Impact Assessment
d) Role of technology in environmental management (GIS, GPS,
Remote sensing as tools)
e) Carbon bank and Carbon credit (a case study)

Map Work

a) Map reading - Bar Diagram, Located Circles, Located Pie

diagram, Choropleth, Isopleth, Dot map, Flow map and
Pictogram

b) Map filling - Environmentally significant features – World,

Konkan and Mumbai

 
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1
ENVIRONMENT : AN OVERVIEW

Unit Structure:
1.0 Objectives
1.1 Introduction
1.2 Environment
1.2.1 Structure And Components Of Environment
1.2.2 Types Of Environment
1.3 Ecosystem As A Part Of Environment
1.3.1 Ecosystem
1.3.2 Functioning And Levels Of Organisation In The
Ecosystem
1.3.2 Linkage Of Ecosystem With Society And Economy
1.4 Emerging Issues Of Development
1.4.1 Environment As A Source And Depository Of Rsources,
Products
1.4.2 Impact Of Economic Development On Environment
1.4.3 Environmental Issues Of Unsustainable Development
1.5 Sustainable Use Of Resources
1.5.1 Sustainable Development
1.5.2 Multidiscilpinary Approach
1.5.3 Importance Of Environmental Studies
1.6 Let Us Sum Up
1.7 Glossary
1.8 Suggestive Reading
1.9 Unit End Exercises

1.0 OBJECTIVES

1. To study the structure and components of environment.

2. To appreciate the functioning of ecosystem.
3. To appraise the linkage of ecosystem with society and
economy.
4. To understand the impact of development on environment.
5. To evaluate the need for sustainable use of resources.
6. To justify the importance of environmental studies in the
present day world.

 
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1.1 INTRODUCTION
Our planet Earth is most suitable to sustain life. Plenty of oxygen for
the animals to breathe and plenty of water for the variety of life
forms that evolve and also the circulation of nutrients e.g. water
cycle, carbon cycle etc. to maintain life on earth. As the citizens of
this planet, we must be curious about the functioning of the
environment. Once we understand the true meaning of the term
‘environment’, we realize our contribution towards its quality and
this is main purpose of environmental studies.

Today we affect environment significantly by extracting minerals,

using energy and emitting pollutants in our quest to meet the
demands of growing population. Overexploitation and pollution are
corroding the life support systems. CFC in the atmosphere today
will continue to deplete ozone layer for centuries to come. Extinct
species shall never come back. We have to be conscious about the
consequences of unsustainable development and learn to put in
more efforts for better environmental quality.

1.2 ENVIRONMENT
The term ‘environment’ is derived from French word environ which
means to encircle or surround. Everything that surrounds us – the
air, water, all living and non-living things - constitute our
environment and it influences our lives. It is from the environment
surrounding us that we get food to eat, water to drink, air to breath
and all necessities of our lifestyle.

According to Gaia hypothesis, (Gaia – Greek goddess Mother

Earth), earth and all living things form a single system with
interdependent components and have ability to self-regulate.

As components are Inter-linked and interdependent, environment is

a live dynamic system and therefore any change made in one
component gets transferred to all other components in a cyclic
manner till it covers the entire system. This understanding is
necessary to realize that human impacts disturb the functioning of
environment and the results are disastrous.

 
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Deforestati Soil Increase Reducti Dry

on
In Climatic
Loss of biodiversity In
Temperature Conditions
Rainfall

DESERTIFICATION

This clearly indicates that use of environment for development may

appear to be beneficial to human societies but definitely not for the
environment as a system. The destruction of environmental
elements caused by human societies led to many crisis situations in
this century and will lead to disasters in the near future.

1.2.1 STRUCTURE AND COMPONENTS OF ENVIRONMENT

The global environment has four mutually interacting components:
1. Lithosphere
2. Hydrosphere
3. Atmosphere
4. Biosphere

Structure of environment 
Atmosphere

Gases  

     Biosphere  

Minerals Water

Lithosphere Hydrosphere  

Biosphere occupies the central position and derives life supporting

elements from other spheres of environment -- Gaseous elements
like carbon dioxide, nitrogen, oxygen etc from atmosphere, water
from hydrosphere and mineral nutrients from lithosphere.

 
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COMPONENTS OF ENVIRONMENT
LITHOSPHERE -- Lithosphere is the outermost solid land surface
of the earth generated largely by igneous processes in which
magma (molten rock) cools and solidifies to form solid land. It
consists of about 15 slowly drifting plates on a layer of partially
molten rock (asthenosphere). The plates carry continents and
ocean floor with them. Lithosphere is thickest in the continental
region (average 40km) and is thinnest under the oceans (average
10-12km)

HYDROSPHERE – It is assumed that hydrosphere contains 1360

million cubic km of water. By far the greatest amount of water (97%)
is in oceans and inland seas. About 2% of the water resources are
locked in the glaciers and ice caps. The remaining about 1% is
available as surface water resources in rivers lakes streams,
reservoirs, ground water and water vapour in the atmosphere.

ATMOSPHERE – The atmosphere is the insulating blanket of air

which is composed of 78% nitrogen, 21% oxygen, 1% argon and
other gases and a variable amount of water vapor. The atmosphere
forms a major source of carbon dioxide to plants and oxygen to
both plants and animals. The ozone layer of the Earth's atmosphere
plays an important role in depleting the amount of ultraviolet (UV)
radiation that reaches the surface. The atmosphere of the Earth
serves as a key factor in sustaining the planetary ecosystem

BIOSPHERE – The biosphere is the part of Earth's outer shell

within which life occurs. It Includes different types of ecosystems
and sustain all life forms including human beings. Till now, more
than 3, 50,000 species of plants and 11 million species of animals
have been identified. The upper limit of biosphere is determined by
availability of oxygen, moisture, air pressure and temperature.
Decrease in these factors, with increase in height, delimits the
upper limit of the biosphere.

1.2.2 TYPES OF ENVIRONMENT

Environment can be broadly classified as natural environment and
cultural or human environment.

Natural environment encompasses living and non-living things

occurring on the earth. It is an ecological unit that functions as
natural systems without human intervention e.g. deep interiors of
forest, virgin environments of remote places, desert environment,
polar environment, coastal environment etc.

 
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The natural environment is contrasted with the human or cultural

environment. It comprises the areas and components that are
strongly influenced by human actions or thoughts e.g. urban
environment, social environment, political environment, economic
environment etc. You are familiar with urban and rural environment.
While rural environment is of simple nature, urban environment is
more complex due to use of technology in its making. Similarly one
can easily understand the difference between social environment
and political environment because social environment means social
and cultural institutions developed by particular community and
political environment comprises the nature of government, laws and
the regulatory system which affect the community.

Check your progress

1. Explain the term ‘environment’. Give suitable examples
2. What is the major difference between natural and human
environment.
3. ‘Environment is a system’. Justify with examples
4. Write in brief about the components of environment.
5. Write short notes on :
a) Human environment
b) lithosphere

1.3 ECOSYSTEM AS A PART OF ENVIRONMENT

All types of plants and animals that survive in the global

environment system constitutes biosphere. It is further subdivided
into biomes because the earth has different climatic zones and
therefore specific combination of vegetation and animal life e.g.
temperate forest, equatorial rain forest etc are noticed in different
parts of the world. Biomes are at the meso level. Within the biomes,
are different ecosystems—pond ecosystem, desert ecosystem etc.

 
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1.3.1 ECOSYSTEM
Any unit that includes all the organisms in a given area interacting
with the physical environment so that a flow of energy leads to
clearly defined tropic structure, biotic diversity, and material cycles
(exchange of materials between living and nonliving parts) within
the system is called an ecosystem.

The term ecosystem coined by A.G.Tansley (1935) to explain the

interaction between biological and physical components of environment. 

Since the physical conditions determine the nature and

characteristics of biotic component of the ecosystems, there are
spatial variations in the biotic communities. Based on this
considerations ecosystems are divided into two major categories.—
1. Terrestrial or land based ecosystems
2. Aquatic ecosystems i.e. ecosystem in water

 
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Each ecosystem has definite organization comprising structural and

functional components. Structural component includes abiotic and
biotic component. Functional component is the volume and rate at
which material circulates and energy flows in the ecosystem.
Structural component of the ecosystem
1. Biotic component
2. Abiotic component
Biotic components are the living organisms of an ecosystem.
According to various modes of nutrition, they are classified as:

 
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1. Producers
2. Consumers
3. Decomposers

Producers – green plants that convert solar energy into food energy
in the process of photosynthesis. As they are self-nourishing they
are called autotrophs.
Consumers -- heterotrophic organisms that consume directly or
indirectly the food energy found in green plants.
a) Primary consumers – herbivores i.e. they are dependent on
the green plants for food e.g. cattle, deer, goat, rabbit,
insects etc.
b) Secondary consumers – flesh eating animals like fox, cat,
snake etc who consume primary consumers.
c) Tertiary consumers – top carnivores which prey other
carnivores and herbivores e.g. lion, tiger, hawk, vulture etc
Decomposers -- micro organisms like fungi and some bacteria
which are incapable of preparing their food and live on dead and
decaying plants or animal parts. They decompose complex organic
substances of the dead parts into simple forms to make them
available to the producers. By releasing enzymes, they carry out
extra digestion of the dead remains and convert them into simple
inorganic substances.

Biodiversity -- Variety of producers and consumers in an ecosystem

is denoted by the term biodiversity. Biodiversity boosts ecosystem
productivity. Greater species diversity ensures natural sustainability
for all life forms and healthy ecosystems can better withstand and
recover from a variety of disasters. Therefore, while we dominate
this planet, we still need to preserve the diversity in wildlife.

 
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ABIOTIC COMPONENTS
Abiotic components provide nutrients to sustain life of biotic
components. This component includes:
i) Inorganic substances – water, gaseous elements, minerals
that are required for synthesis of organic substances by
the producers.
ii) Organic substances derived from dead plants and animals
as well as from their excreta.
iii) Climatic elements like temperature, light, winds, rain,
moisture etc.
These abiotic components play an important role in
influencing the nature of biotic components of the
ecosystem because both the components are interlinked
and interdependent.

Plants or autotrophs utilize abiotic elements and prepare food for

other biotic elements i.e. consumers. The dead remains of the
plants and animals get disintegrated by the decomposers and
nutrients are returned to the abiotic component of the ecosystem.
Due to this type of interrelation natural ecosystems are capable of
self-regulation and self-maintenance.

1.3.2 FUNCTIONING AND LEVELS OF ORGANISATION IN THE

ECOSYSTEM
Functional component is the volume and rate at which material
circulates and energy flows in the ecosystem.
All systems require inputs to make them work, and they all
produce outputs. 

 
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Natural ecosystems of the environment receive energy from Sun.

The autotrophs or plants utilize solar energy and produce food
energy in the process of photosynthesis. This food energy is then
passed on to the other organisms i.e. consumers of the ecosystem.
SUN PLANTS PRIMARY SECONDAR TERTIARY
CONSUMER Y CONSUMERS
SOLAR FOOD S CONSUMER
ENERGY ENERG S FOOD
Y FOOD ENERGY
ENERGY FOOD
ENERGY

Food chain -- The transfer of food energy from the source in plants
through a series of organisms with repeated eating and being eaten
is referred to as food chain.
In the following examples of food chain ‘is consumed by’ is denoted
as

GRASS SLUG DUCK HAWK

SEED SNAKE FOX

MOUSE

HAWK
GREEN PLANT GRASSHOPPE FROG SNAKE
R
Food chains are not isolated sequences but are interconnected with
one another. This interlocking pattern of consumption is called
foodweb.

 
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As energy is passed on from one level to the next, only a small

share of it is retained in the body of living organisms. Most energy
is converted into heat and given back to the atmosphere. Because
of the high rate of the heat loss from organisms, the supply of
energy in the ecosystem attenuates very rapidly with transfer
through each group of eaters.
The following linkage diagram explains the unidirectional path of
energy in the natural ecosystems

Sun   ENERGY RETURNS TO THE ENVIRONMENT 

 
AUTOTROPHS  PC SC  TC 

CONSUMERS -- PC – PRIMARY, SC – SECONDARY & TC –

TERTIARY

If herbivores eat 1000k cal of plant energy, about 100k cal will
convert into herbivores tissues, 10 k cal into first level carnivores
production and 1k cal into 2nd level carnivores production i.e. 90%
loss of energy from one trophic level to the next. In other words, the
energy level gradually tapers in the food chain, forming a pyramid
like structure. Therefore graphic representation of trophic structure
is called ecological pyramids.
  

S
    P. C. 

AUTOTROPHS 

P.C. – Primary consumers S—secondary consumers

 
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Basically three types of pyramids are recognized:

1. Pyramids of numbers – producers are highest in number and
the number decreases with each successive level.
2. Pyramids of biomass – In terrestrial ecosystem, pyramid is
upright but in aquatic ecosystem it is inverted. The
phytoplankton, algae and small aquatic plants are lighter in
biomass and are rapidly eaten by primary consumers (water
fleas, insects etc.).
3. Pyramids of energy – Greater amount of energy is available at
the producer level than at the primary consumer level and the
energy at the primary level is more than secondary level thus
the general pattern of pyramid remains upright in all
ecosystems.

Biogeochemical cycles
While the flow of energy in an ecosystem is one-way, nutrients
needed to produce organic material are circulated in the system
(moved through the atmosphere, hydrosphere, lithosphere and
biosphere) and reused several times e.g. water cycle. These cycles
are of two types:
• Gaseous cycles in which reservoir is in the atmosphere e.g.
carbon, oxygen, nitrogen
• Sedimentary cycles in which reservoir is in lithosphere e.g.
phosphorus and sulphur cycle

Carbon cycle

 
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Carbon occurs as a carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, as organic

compounds in plants and animal bodies, in coal and petroleum
deposits and as in organic carbonate in water rocks shells etc.
photosynthesis brings carbon of atmosphere into the biotic pool
while respiration and decomposition of organic matter adds this
element to the atmosphere
Nitrogen cycle

Nitrogen is an essential element for all living organisms. The main

reserve of nitrogen is atmospheric air. Biological nitrogen fixation
carried on by some bacteria and blue green algae brings the
nitrogen of the atmospheric pool into the soil or aquatic bodies from
where it is taken up in the biosphere. Decay and decomposition of
plants and animal waste yields ammonia which is converted into
nitrite by bacteria (nitrosomonas) and then nitrate by the activity of
the bacteria like nitrobacter. The process of dinitrification brought
about by the bacteria such as pseudomonas, thiobacillus etc.
converts nitrates into elemental nitrogen which is finally added to
atmosphere,

 
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In general each cycle possesses three aspects: i) input ii) output

and iii) internal cycling of nutrients. Nutrients are absorbed by the
plants from the soil and become part of food. The food moves from
producers to consumers to decomposers and the nutrients are
released back to the soil or atmosphere by the activity of micro-
organisms.

1.3.3 LINKAGE OF ECOSYSTEM WITH SOCIETY AND

ECONOMY

We can understand the linkage of ecosystem with society and

economy through the services rendered by the components of
ecosystem. Collectively, they are known as ecosystem
services. For example, when fungi, worms and bacteria transform
the raw "ingredients" of sunlight, carbon and nitrogen into fertile soil
this transformation is an ecosystem service. Walking outside after
the sunrise and feel the sun on your skin. See a butterfly pollinating
a flower, and be cooled by a gentle breeze. The sun, the pollination,
and even the breeze, are examples of the services provided by the
ecosystems.
Let us understand some more examples.
• Mangroves and coral reefs that shelter the shoreline from
erosion and heavy surf.
• Decomposition and recycling of waste
• Photosynthesis
• Storage of large amounts of carbon in plants
• The regulation of climate, water etc
• biomass production, production of atmospheric oxygen, soil
formation, cycling of nutrients

On one hand there is a long list of ecosystem services but on the

other hand human societies grab these services to satisfy the their
rising demands. To satisfy the demand of more progress or
development of the economy, economic activities are developed on
a very large scale and services given by the ecosystem are

exploited ruthlessly.

 
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Over the past 50 years, humans have changed natural ecosystems

more rapidly and extensively than any comparable period in human
history. Growth of population and advances in technology increased
the pressure on ecosystems and resulted in the loss of vital
ecosystem services which purify and replenish water, soil and air
resources. Unfortunately, since ecosystem services are freely
available, they are often undervalued but if we maintain the quality
of natural assets, we will benefit from greater returns.

Check Your Progress

1. Define what is an ecosystem? What are different types of
ecosystems?
2. Note down the classification of ecosystems.
3. What are the different components of ecosystem? Explain
them with suitable examples.
4. Explain the term biotic diversity with suitable examples.
5. Give the list of terrestrial ecosystems that function in the
natural environment.
6. Why is Biodiversity important? Does it really matter if there
aren’t so many species?
7. Briefly describe the functional component of an ecosystem.
8. What is meant by nutrient cycling? Explain by taking the
example of carbon cycle.
9. What are biogeochemical cycles?
10. Explain the nature of energy flow in the ecosystem?
11. What are ecological pyramids?
12. Write short notes on
a) Autotrophs
b) Food chain
c) Food web
d) Phosphorus cycle

 
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13. Write in brief about the linkage between ecosystem and

society and economy.

1.4 EMERGING ISSUES OF DEVELOPMENT

In last few decades it has become increasingly evident that global

ecosystem has the capacity to sustain only a limited level of
utilization. Ecosystems cannot go on replenishing resources if they
are overused or misused. At a critical point increasing pressure
destabilizes the natural balance. Surprisingly, we, as a society, do
not strongly resist forces that bring about ecological degradation.
These forces are the sectors of the society that use a ‘get-rich-
quick’ approach to development and we support them because we
need fruits of development. We wish to enjoy modern lavish
lifestyle.

No doubt, development is for our benefit (convenience and

comforts) but it is a sword of destruction of the ecological assets.
This is mainly due to our improper thinking on what ‘development’
means. Consequently, there are many serious issues in both
developed and developing countries.

1.4.1 ENVIRONMENT AS A SOURCE AND DEPOSITORY OF

RSOURCES, PRODUCTS
Anything that satisfies human wants or anything that benefits
human beings is called a resource. Environment is a storehouse of
wide variety of resources that are demanded for survival of human
beings and also for progress of human societies. Water is a
resource. We need water for drinking, washing, cooking and also
for agriculture, industry and to generate electricity. Soil is a
resource. The nature of crop grown depends upon type of soil. It is
the most basic resource for agriculture. Stones, sand are used for
construction. Metallic and non-metallic minerals support industrial
development. Fuels satisfy our energy needs. Forest provides
timber and other valuable products. The list of resources is very
long and sufficient to explain the importance of environment as a
source and depository of variety of resources produced and
consumed in the human societies.

The natural resources are either consumed directly or processed

into new forms to satisfy specific demands. Such processed
resources are called cultural resources or products or goods e.g.
chair, ship, bridge, biscuits etc

 
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1.4.2 IMPACT OF ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT ON

ENVIRONMENT
Throughout history humans have both affected, and been affected
by, the environment and it is used and altered by a wide variety of
people with many different interests and values. Human interaction
with the environment increased during Paleolithic era (50 thousand
to 1 million year ago) when he gathered the knowledge of fire and
tools to bring about change in the environment. Neolithic period
(10,000 to 60,000 BC) was characterized by the domestication of
plants and animals, use of metals and harnessed energy. Bronze
age (shortly after 3000 BC) and Iron Age (starting 1000 BC) is
known for large scale deforestation, grazing of pastures, clearance

 
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of land for agriculture and settlements.

Technological revolution of 20th century not only increased the rate
of resource exploitation, production and also increased the storage
capacity.
Access to the variety of products of technology for comfort brought
about change in human attitude – greedy and careless. As a result,
the wave of consumerism and materialism increased the
consumption of resources significantly and pressurized the
production sector and consequently, markets flooded with the
products to satisfy basic and luxury needs of the growing
population. Under these circumstances, waste dumped in the
environment increased by many folds.

Economic growth of human societies transforms beautiful natural

environment into the huge ugly waste basket/ dustbin.

1.4.3 ENVIRONMENTAL ISSUES OF UNSUSTAINABLE

DEVELOPMENT
It is important to note that about 50,000 years ago, the total world
population is estimated to be not more than 10 million. But
tremendous increase from one billion in 1800 to 4 billion in 1987
and today human number has crossed the mark of 6 billion.

With small human numbers in the past, throwing away the bio-
degradable waste was not a serious issue. But today, enormous
number throwing away large quantity of bio-degradable and non-
biodegradable waste and contributing to all types of pollution is
indeed extremely damaging to the environment.

This clearly indicates that in the 21st century, human pressure on

natural environments is greater than before in terms of magnitude
and efficiency in disrupting nature and natural landscapes and thus
valuable ecological assets turn into serious issues.

 
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• Pollution in many different forms like air, sea, water,

noise pollution is a serious issue and pollution levels on
global scale are constantly rising. Industry, together with
vehicles is major culprit that made our planet polluted.
• Air pollution. This is caused by polluting industries and
vehicular traffic. Burning incinerators, furnaces and
stoves cause it. Wind is responsible for spreading air
pollution. The Ozone layer has been damaged because
of the use of CFC’s (Chlorofluorocarbons) which are used
in a number of industrial, commercial, and household
applications.
• Water pollution. Industries and factories release toxic
wastes into the water. Leakage from oil tankers causes
pollution of the sea. Pesticides and fertilizers also cause
water pollution. Sewage released by cities into water
bodies. It is predicted that there will be conflicts among
nations because water will become scarce.
• Soil Erosion. When trees and plants are destroyed that
causes increase in soil erosion.
• Destruction of biodiversity. Many plant and animal
species have become extinct or are approaching
extinction because of human activities. These
endangered species may have important uses in
medicine and science for humans.
• Devastation of natural habitats. Species such as tigers
and lions are reducing in numbers because humans are
steadily destroying the natural habitats which sustain
them.
• Diminishing natural resources. Mankind is using up
natural resources at an alarming rate. Fuel, water,
minerals, timber are being consumed rapidly. Oil and
natural gas resources are expected to get over by the
end of this century.
• Pollution in Marine habitat. Overfishing has led to the
extinction of many fish species. The oceans are vast but
still vulnerable to pollution.
• Adverse impact of mass tourism – all types of pollution
noticed in popular resorts.
• Adverse impact of government policies -- the policies
pursued in the industry, transport and energy sectors
having a direct and damaging impact on the coasts,
major rivers (dam construction and associated canal
building) and mountain landscapes (main road networks).
• Problem of solid waste disposal -- Waste can attract
rodents and insects which cause gastrointestinal
parasites, yellow fever, worms, the plague and other
conditions for humans. The most dangerous aspect of the
waste is that it often contains highly toxic and hazardous
materials that are injurious to both human health and

 
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environmental quality. Exposure to hazardous wastes

can cause neurological disorders, reduce resistance to
infection and cancer. Waste can contaminate surface
water, groundwater, soil, and air and cause more
problems not only for humans but also for the other
species of ecosystems.
• Global warming is the increase in the average
temperature of Earth's near-surface air and oceans since
the mid-20th century caused by increasing
concentrations of greenhouse gases resulting
from human activity such as fossil fuel burning and
deforestation.
• Loss of forest cover. Forest being cut down for timber,
construction and for obtaining extra agricultural land.
Deforestation, particularly in rainforests is serious
because rainforests regulate the climate, so destroying
them means giving more impact to climate change as
well as destroying habitats of many animals and plants
that can be found only in these areas. The most
important rainforest in the world is Amazon rainforest that
covers area of five and a half million square kilometers
(1.4 billion acres) , almost 20 % of this rainforest is
already destroyed, and if we continue this current trend
we'll be soon on a verge of making the biggest
environmental disaster in history.

The list is endless. If we fail to act, we will come to the point of no

return where there won't be any available solutions left to us. This is
the time in our history where we have to show that we have been
blessed with superior intellect in order to protect our planet not to
destroy it. Let us not forget that our future generations also need
this planet to survive.

Check your progress

1. What is the difference between endowment and resource?
Give examples
2. ‘Environment is a source and depository of resources.’
Explain
3. Comment on progress of human societies and the resulting
impact on the environment.
4. Discuss the process in which resources are developed in
the human societies and the waste is generated in the
environment.
5. Note down the consequences of economic growth or
development.
6. Discuss the issues related to the forest and animal
resources.
7. Write short notes on :
a) Global warming
b) Pollution

 
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c) Solid waste

1.5 SUSTAINABLE USE OF RESOURCES

Today, environment is a global issue which forces us to think. What
are we doing? What will happen if we do not make necessary
modifications in our means, methods and objectives?

Development of skills and technology may be highly beneficial

and prestigious to human societies but definitely not for

It is a high time that we should re-think and take proper steps to

build up the world of sustainable society. Each one of us can adopt
sustainable lifestyle. To achieve this goal we must change our
attitude towards lifestyle and the environment we interact with.
Love and respect for nature is the greatest sentiment that will
change our attitude from careless to care taker of the nature. Think
about beauty of forest in the rainy season, crystal clear water of
springs, freshness and energy of the tides. If we respect this, we
cannot act to destruction of life-support system – ecosystem.

1.5.1 SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT

Sustainable development implies meeting the needs of the present
without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their
own needs.

The term ‘Sustainable Development’ was introduced in 1987 by

World Commission on Environment and Development (Brundtland
Commission) in its report ‘Our Common Future’

Let us ask ourselves the basic question -- What is the maximum

number of people the Earth can sustain? If we are using our
renewable environmental resources faster than they can replenish,
the most obvious consequence is shortage of resources now and
the acute shortage or depletion in the future. We must learn to
sustain resources so they continue to provide benefits to all living
beings of present and future generation.

It a process of change in which, the exploitation of resources, the

direction of investments, the orientation of technological
development and institutional change are all in harmony and
enhance both current and future potentials to meet human needs
and aspirations.

To assure the potential of life support system to serve our future

generations, we must reduce the use or wastage of non-renewable
resources, sustainable use of renewable resources – including use

 
  26

of fresh water, soil and forest in a manner which ensures the

natural rate of replacement and keeping within the absorptive
capacity of local and global sinks for wastes- including the capacity
of rivers to break down the biodegradable waste as well as capacity
of global environmental system such as climate, to absorb green
house gases.
The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development
held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992 and world Summit on Sustainable
Development at Johannesburg in 2002 have drawn the attention of
people around the globe to the deteriorating condition of our
environment. It is clear that no citizen of the earth can afford to be
ignorant of environment issues. Even our ancient scriptures have
emphasized about practices and values of environmental
conservation. It is now even more critical than ever before for
mankind as a whole to have a clear understanding of environmental
concerns and to follow sustainable lifestyle practices.

• Practice simple living. Ask yourself if you really need more

material goods to make your life happy.
• Rent, borrow or barter. Can you reduce the amount of stuff
you consume by renting instead of buying equipments that
you use rarely?
• Recycle or reuse the materials and make optimum use of
things you purchase.
• Buy green products. Look out for the goods produced in
environment friendly manner.
• Buy locally grown or locally made products.

Situation will improve only if each one of us begins to take action in

our daily lives and thereby we will be contributing to sustainability of
better ecosystem services for us and for future generations.

1.5.2 MULTIDISCILPINARY APPROACH

The quality of environment being the most important issues today,
the challenge is to find approaches to environmental management
to ensure the better quality of life and also the protection of our
environment and natural resources that are the foundations of our
well being. In order to face these challenges, students today will
need more than superficial knowledge. A multidisciplinary approach
is necessary for deeper understanding of the technological,
political, and social options and strategies for both studying and
managing the relationship between our society and the
environment.

Thus the study environment requires the knowledge developed in

many different disciplines.

 
  27

• Physical sciences including chemistry and physics along with

geology, atmospheric science oceanography, geography etc
increase our knowledge of physic-chemical structure of abiotic
or non-living components of the environment.
• Life sciences including botany, zoology, biochemistry,
biotechnology, micro biology, genetics ecology etc. help in
understanding biotic components of the environment.
• Mathematics, statistics, computer science serve as effective
tools in resources management.
• Education helps in making people aware of various
environmental problems and their solutions.
• Economics, sociology, mass communication furnish inputs to
deal with socio-economic aspects.
• Political science and environmental law provide tool for judicious
management for protection of environment

Study of environment with a multi-disciplinary approach help us to

realize that sustainable use of resources is inevitable for present
and future generations. Thus importance of environmental studies
is ever increasing in the present day world.
1.5.3 IMPORTANCE OF ENVIRONMENTAL STUDIES
We all know that the environmental problems are increasing not
only in number but also in scale. What is our future? Today, if we
have long list of environmental issues resulting from the
development, what is our role in this process? Today, if we are
experiencing shortage of water, food and other necessities of life,
what will happen in future? What type of attitudinal change is
necessary to assure the continuous availability of the necessities of
life?
It is very necessary today, to acquire knowledge about the root
causes of environmental problems and also the short term and long
term consequences, so that we can understand our role in this
process. We can seek answers to these questions through the
study of environment.

It appears that environmental problems created by development are

not due to technology or need for development but rather due to the
lack of awareness about the consequences of unlimited and
unrestrained anti-environmental behavior. Therefore, each action
by an individual must be linked to its environmental consequences
in his/her mind so that one can understand the difference between
pro-environmental behavior and anti-environmental actions.

As we are degrading the environment, we are actually harming

ourselves and our future generations.

 
  28

This can happen only when educational process will provide a

meaning to what is taught in school and college level. Providing
appropriate meaning to the questions related to our own
environment is the first step towards pro-environmental behavior.

• I will always care Mother Earth. 
• I will use resources carefully. 
• I will always work for the protection of environment. 
• I will not carelessly throw away the items that are 
derived from the natural resources. 

Thus, Environmental education has a fundamental role to play in

motivating people to adopt environment friendly practices.
For issues concerning environment, active co-operation of
everyone is needed. Individuals collectively make a society and
movements which begin at grass root level affect ideologies and
policies of the countries as a whole more effectively than the
policies introduced from top downwards. Much improvement can be
achieved by individual lifestyle decisions.
Importance of environmental studies is increasing because
1. It create an awareness about the quality of environment,
both natural and human
2. It studies about functional links between environment,
economy and society
3. Keeps the track of emerging environmental issues, both
natural and human
4. Stresses the importance of measures that could be taken to
reduce and mitigate the environmental problems.
5. Motivate people to accept environment friendly lifestyle
6. Creates general awareness about the critical environmental
problems—their causes and consequences.
7. Stress the importance of measures that could be taken to
reduce and mitigate the environmental problems.
The world today, is seeking answer for the most important
question – How to achieve the goal of sustainable
development?
Environmental education is one of the key elements that help us
to move towards this goal.

Check Your Progress

1. Explain the concept of sustainable development?
2. What do you understand by ‘unsustainable development’?
Give suitable examples.
3. Write in brief about need for sustainable development.
4. Justify the need of multi-disciplinary approach to study
‘environment’
5. Evaluate the importance of ‘environmental studies’.

 
  29

1.6 LET US SUM UP

Environment is a live dynamic system. Various ecosystems of the
environment are self regulating and self-sustaining. Services
offered by ecosystems are essential for human well-being.
However, the progress in human societies in terms of resource
development of present generations is resulting in negative impacts
on the supply of ecosystem services to future generations.
There are several commonly owned resources that we derive from
environment and all of us use them as a community. The water that
nature recycles, the air that we breathe, the forest and grassland
which maintain our climate and soil are all common property
resources .Use of these resources for progress is beneficial to
human societies but definitely not to environment as a system. The
water we drink, the air we breathe, food we eat is badly polluted.
Forests are disappearing. The green patches in the city are being
replaced by concrete buildings. Waste products are being dumped
indiscriminately. Water is too toxic to drink. The air is unfit to
breathe. Global warming has become a menacing issue. The
disturbance and destruction of environmental elements caused by
human societies will lead to many crisis situations and disasters in
the near future. The human race is at the brink of a self-created
disaster.
Reducing the unsustainable use of resources and controlling
population growth are essential for the survival of mankind on the
earth surface. We must move towards sustainable use of resources
so that we can reduce the number and intensity of environmental
problems and to some extent protect life supporting systems.
Study of environment with a multi-disciplinary approach help us to
realize that sustainable use of resources is inevitable for present
and future generations and therefore, importance of environmental
studies is ever increasing in the present day world.

1.7 GLOSSARY

Bio-degradation – oxidative breakdown of natural substances by

microbial activity.
Biome – A large community of plants and animals, characterized by
particular type of dominant vegetation and the associated animals.
Desertification – Process of desert formation
Ecology - The study of relationship between organisms and
environment
Food chain – a series of organisms arranged in a linear manner
with repeated eating and being eaten.
Food web -- complex network of interconnected food chains
Global warming -- Rise in temperature of earth due to abnormal
increase in green house gases.
Photosynthesis – the process in which green plants utilized

 
  30

sunlight, water and carbon dioxide and prepare food.

1.8 SUGGESTIVE READING

1. Daniel Botkin and Edward Keller, 2000 -- Environmental
Science : Earth as a living Planet, John Wiley and Sons
2. S.P. Misra and S.N. Pandey, 2010 – Essential Environmental
Studies, Ane Books Pvt Ltd.
3. D. K. Asthana and Meera Asthana, 2007 – A Textbook of
Environmental Studies, S. Chand
4. P. G. Shinde and others, 2009 – A New Course in
Environmental Studies, Sheth Publisher
5. Erach Bharucha, 2005 – Textbook of Environmental Studies for
Undergraduate courses, University Press
6. William P. Cunningham and Mary Ann Cunningham, 2002 –
Principles of Environmental Science: Inquiry and Applications

1.9 Unit End Exercises

1. What is the structure and components of environment?

2. What sustains life on Earth?’
3. What is the nature of interaction between ecosystem with the
society and economy?
4. Why do we have long list of environmental issues?
5. Why sustainable use of resources by the present generation of
human societies?
6. What is the importance of environmental studies in the present
day world?
7. Why do we need to protect the environment?
8. Define environment. What are the various components of
environment?
9. Comment on the services rendered by the ecosystems.
10. What are the consequences of unsustainable consumption?

 
  31

2
NATURAL RESOURCES
Unit Structure:

2.0 Objectives
2.1 Introduction
2.2 Natural Resources
2.2.1defination And Meaning Of The Term ‘Natural Resource
2.2.2 Importance Of Natural Resources
2.2.3 Classification Of Natural Resources
2.3 Global Pattern Of Resource Development
2.3.1 Resource Rich Regions
2.3.2 Resource Poor Countries
2.3.3 Emerging Gap Between Rich And Poor Regions
2.4 Let Us Sum Up
2.5 Glossary
2.6 Suggestive Reading
2.7 Unit End Exercises

2.0 OBJECTIVES

To understand the value of natural resources

To explain the similarities and differences between the natural
resources
To identify the global inequalities

2.1 INTRODUCTION

Environment provides wide variety of biotic and abiotic elements.

These elements or resources are being used in the human
societies to satisfy basic and luxury needs. In other words, it is the
human intelligence that counts in the resource development.
Human beings are blessed with a brain which is far superior to any
other animal. They can translate intelligence into skill and skills in
technology. They are the producers, consumers and distributers of
the natural resources that are derived from the ecosystems. They
have proved their ability to modify the natural ecosystems and
developed man-engineered systems. They are successful in
processing natural resources to create a wide range of cultural
resources and vast landscapes of cultural environments for their
comforts. These achievements are however related to the cultural
progress in the human societies. Knowledge, abilities, monetary
resources, skills and technology that determine the levels of
resource development are not uniformly developed in the world. We

 
  32

are living in the world of haves and have-nots. Very few live in
luxury with wide variety of resources and many suffer due to acute
shortage. This global inequality is serious because both haves and
have-nots are the victims and agents of environmental degradation.

2.2 NATURAL RESOURCES

Environment is a source of natural resources e.g. forest for wood,

river water for agriculture or hydroelectricity etc and natural
resources are the backbone of every economy. Obviously,
therefore, sustainability of economy depends upon sustainable use
of the resources of the environment.

Some of the resources such as air, water, land are easily available
whereas others such as minerals fossil fuels are extracted by using
special skills developed in the human societies. If properly
managed, natural resources are sufficient to sustain life on earth.
But ever increasing number of humans and greed are resulting in
the depletion of natural resources. It is a great threat to mankind.
Natural resources need to be consumed in a sustainable manner
and conserved for future generation.

2.2.1DEFINATION AND MEANING OF THE TERM ‘NATURAL

RESOURCE
Any natural stuff or stock that exists in nature is a nature’s gift or
endowment. Our environment provides large number of gifts. Air,
water, soil, minerals, solar energy etc are nature’s gifts to mankind.
As and when these endowments are used in the human societies,
they are called natural resources. In other words, Endowment turns
into a resource when it satisfies human wants e.g. river flowing in
the forest is an endowment. The same becomes a resource when
river water is used for irrigation or navigation or to generate
electricity.

Anything that benefits man or anything that leads to human welfare

is a resource.

It is the utility of the good and its function to satisfy human wants
that make a substance a resource. If a thing is not useful it is not a
resource e.g land is a resource if it is useful to produce crops
essential for living. Similarly, water, minerals etc are resources as
they are useful and perform the function of satisfying human wants.
ENVIRONMENT ENDOWMENTS RESOURCES
Endowments exists irrespective of their utility to man. They have
independent existence. They are not created by man. However,
endowments form the base of natural resources. Resources do not
have independent existence they are created as per the
requirements of the human societies. Therefore value of resources

 
  33

change in the context of place and time, depending on technical

knowhow, cultural development and standard of living.

NATURE 

ENDOWMENTS 

HUMAN EFFORTS  NATURAL  CULTURE 

RESOURCES 
PHYSICAL AND  KNOWLEDGE, SKILLS 
MENTAL  AND TECHNOLOGY 

Resources are created through the interaction of nature, human

efforts and the cultural progress. In the production of steel, iron ore,
coal, lime stone, water etc. are derived from nature. Humans
provide labour – both physical and mental. The machinery used,
power generated and transport facilities are the creation of cultural
progress.

2.2.2 IMPORTANCE OF NATURAL RESOURCES

Resources are created in human societies and therefore, resource
value changes in the context of place and time. As cultural progress
takes place over a period of time human wants also change.
Change in wants therefore results in the change in the concept of
what constitute a resource. Rivers, in ancient time, were utilized for
limited purpose – domestic needs, irrigation and navigation but
today, rivers are multipurpose resources -- domestic needs,
irrigation, navigation, hydro-electricity, tourism, medium to carry
waste of industries and urban areas. This clearly indicates that
resources are not static but dynamic. With the cultural progress not
only new resources added but the same resources may become
more useful.

Importance of natural resources

1. satisfy our basic needs – food, clothing and shelter
2. form the base of primary and secondary activities
3. land as a resources is a platform for development of
economic activities and human settlements
4. resource development contributes to economic development
of the countries
5. Resources are indispensable to human survival and
progress of human societies.
As resources are very useful, we attach some information value to
them. Resources help to produce goods so they have economic
value. Natural resources like forests, mountains etc. are considered
beautiful so they have aesthetic value. Gifts of nature such as water

 
  34

also have a legal value because it is our right to consume them. On

the other hand, resources have an ethical value as well because it
is our moral duty to protect and conserve them for the future
generations.

2.2.3 CLASSIFICATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES

The natural resources can be classified on their chemical nature,

availability or abundance, area of occurrence, origin and utility etc.
i) Classification of Natural resources based on chemical
nature
1. Inorganic resources – air, water, rocks, mineral ores
etc
2. Organic resources – plants, animals, micro-
organisms
3. Mixed resources – the natural resources which are
combinations of both organic and inorganic are called
mixed resources e.g. soil. Inorganic matter of the soil
results from weathering and disintegration of rocks
and the organic component i.e. humus from the
decomposition of plants and animals.
ii) Natural resources based on the availability or
abundance
1. Inexhaustible resources – resources like solar
energy, air, water, wind, tides etc
2. Exhaustible resources – the resources once used
are lost forever are called exhaustible resources e.g.
coal, mineral oil, natural gas.
III) Natural resources based on their occurrence
i) Global resources – these resources are available to all
countries and have no boundaries e.g. sunlight, air
ii) International resources – these resources are shared by
more than one country e.g. river Brahmaputra shared by
Tibet, India and Bangladesh
iii) National resources – these resources are located within the
political boundary of a particular country.
IV) Natural resources based on their origin
Biotic - Biotic resources are those obtained from
the biosphere. Forests and their products, animals, birds and
their products, fish and other marine organisms are important
examples. Minerals such as coal and petroleum are in this
category because they were formed by the decay of organic
matter.
Abiotic - Abiotic resources comprise of non-living things.
Examples include land, water, air and minerals such as gold,
iron, copper, silver etc.
V) On the basis of the stage of development
Potential Resources - Potential resources are those that
exist in a region and may be used in the future. For
example, mineral oil may exist in many parts of India having

 
  35

sedimentary rocks but till the time it is actually drilled out and put
into use, it remains a potential resource.
Actual Resources are those that have been surveyed, their
quantity and quality determined, and are being used in present
times. For example, petroleum and natural gas obtained from
the Bombay High Fields. The development of an actual
resource, such as wood processing depends upon the
technology available and the cost involved. That part of the
actual resource that can be developed profitably with available
technology is called a reserve.

VI) On the basis of renewability

Renewable Resources - Renewable resources are those that can
be replenished or reproduced easily. Some of them, like sunlight,
air, wind, etc., are continuously available and their quantity is not
affected by human consumption. Many renewable resources can be
depleted by human use, but may also be replenished, thus
maintaining a flow. Some of these, like agricultural crops, take a
short time for renewal; others, like water, take a comparatively
longer time, while still others, like forests, take even longer. If
consumption of renewable resources exceeds their rate of renewal
they may become non-renewable.

Non-renewable Resources - Non-renewable resources are formed

over very long geological periods. Minerals and fossils are included
in this category. Since their rate of formation is extremely slow, they
cannot be replenished once they are depleted. Out of these, the
metallic minerals can be re-used by recycling them, but coal and
petroleum cannot be recycled.

Check Your Progress

a) What is the difference between ‘endowment’ and ‘resource’?
b) Explain the term ‘natural resource’. Give suitable examples.
c) Note down the classification of resources on the basis of stage
of development.
d) Evaluate the importance of natural resources.
e) Write short notes on:
i) Non-renewable resources
ii) Abiotic resources

 
  36

2.3 GLOBAL PATTERN OF RESOURCE DEVELOPMENT

Evolution of human societies is not uniform in the world. The
number of resources, their nature and the scale of resource
development depends upon the knowledge and technology
developed in the human society and therefore the same thing may
function as a resource at some place and as a natural stock at
other place. While some capital rich countries are equipped with
technology and therefore they exploit as many resources as
possible. But many countries are poor in terms of both, capital and
technology. They are suffering due to scarcity of resources or lack
of access (due to poverty).Such global inequality has developed
over hundreds of years due to difference in cultural progress and
further extended by unfair patterns of trade between advanced
resource- rich countries and less developed resource-poor
countries.

2.3.1 RESOURCE RICH REGIONS

The countries, economically well developed, equipped with
scientific knowledge and sophisticated technology, are rich in all
types of resources (including monetary and human resources) are
called resource rich countries. The term ‘resource-rich’ is used to
describe countries that have a high level of resource development.
These are the countries where population is less than the available
resources. USA -- the world's largest economy -- with just 4% of
world’s population consumes about 25% of world’s resources.

RESOURCE‐RICH COUNTRIES 

  POPULATION 
 

RESOURCES CONSUMPTION 

 
The United States economy produced roughly $15 trillion worth of goods
and services in 2008, making it easily the largest in the world. China is
next, at about $12 trillion, according to one widely used estimate. Per
person, the American economy has the fourth largest output-- more than
$45,000 for every man, woman and child. (topics.nytimes.com)

The high-income OECD member countries are resources rich

countries of the world. (OECD – Organization for Economic Co-
operation and Development formed in 1961, includes free market
economies)

Although the combined population of the OECD represents only

 
  37

18% of the world’s population, they consume 80% of the world’s

resources. This is due to the pattern of economic development that
ensures that people go on consuming even more than they actually
need and produce high proportion of pollutants and waste. They
produce over 75% of the global industrial waste and greenhouse
gases.

These countries are rich in monetary resources – capital and per

capita income, they put in both capital and human resource in
improvement of scientific knowledge and technology. They
therefore need large quantity and high quality of natural and cultural
resources. Since all types of resources are not available in their
own environment they are over-exploiting the natural resources of
the developing countries to grow larger economies. Consequently,
they are responsible for over-exploitation of natural resources of
their own environment and also of the developing countries. Rich
population of these countries consume wide variety of products –
domestic and foreign- and therefore resource-rich countries
produce enormous volumes of solid waste and there is a serious
problem of how to dispose of this waste (bio-medical, e-waste) in
environmentally safe manner.

2.3.2 RESOURCE POOR COUNTRIES

These are the countries located in Africa, Asia, central and
south America Latin America and the Caribbean, Asia, and the
Pacific Islands of Melanesia, Micronesia and Polynesia.( which
have not achieved a significant degree of industrialization and in
most cases a medium to low standard of living  and they suffer due
to widespread poverty). These are the countries where population
is excessively more than the available resources and therefore
problem of poverty hunger and nutrition (Due to poverty people
unable to afford food and hence people go hungry).

• Almost half the world — over 3 billion people — live on less

than $2.50 a day.
• 1 billion children live in poverty (1 in 2 children in the world).
640 million live without adequate shelter, 400 million have
no access to safe water, 270 million have no access to
health services. 10.6 million died in 2003 before they

 
  38

reached the age of 5 (or roughly 29,000 children per day).

The new poverty line is defined as living on the equivalent of

$1.25 a day. With that measure based on latest data available
(2005), 1.4 billion people live on or below that line.
Furthermore, almost half the world—over three billion people—
live on less than $2.50 a day and at least 80% of humanity lives
on less than $10 a day:

Poverty in these countries that affects the resource development is

multidimensional issue. The causes are many and interrelated.
Some of them are listed below:
• Land rights and ownership
• Diversion of land use to non-productive use
• Increasing emphasis on export-oriented agriculture
• Inefficient agricultural practices
• War
• Famine
• Drought
• Over-fishing
• Poor crop yield
• Lack of democracy and rights
• Exploitative policy of producers
• Politics of poverty
• Aid grants from resource-rich countries but dwarfed by the
burden of debt

Life in the under-developed countries strives to survive on a

meager share, for the want of basic necessities and in ignorance
damage the very resource base on which rests the life support
systems. Thus World’s poorest people are both the victims and the
agents of environmental degradation.

 
  39

These countries depend on resource-rich countries for foreign

exchange which they earn through the export of raw materials and
other primary products. Moreover the demand for these products is
very high in the resource-rich countries and therefore these
countries are not only the suppliers of natural resources to rich
countries but also the markets and also the dumping grounds for
the waste produced in these countries.

In 1970, the world’s rich countries agreed to give 0.7% of their

gross national income as official international development aid,
annually. Since that time, billions have certainly been given each
year, but rarely have the rich nations actually met their promised
target. The US is often the largest donor in dollar terms, but ranks
amongst the lowest in terms of meeting the stated 0.7% target.
Moreover, aid has often come with a price of its own for the
developing nations. Common criticisms, for many years, of foreign
aid, have included the following:

• Aid is often wasted on conditions that the recipient must use

overpriced goods and services from donor countries
• Most aid does not actually go to those who need it the most.
• Aid amounts are dwarfed by rich country protectionism that
denies market access for poor country products while rich
nations use aid as a lever to open poor country markets to
their products.
• Large projects or massive grand strategies often fail to help
the vulnerable; money can often be embezzled away.

2.3.3 EMERGING GAP BETWEEN RICH AND POOR REGIONS

There are many hypotheses about what may cause international
inequality. For example, poor countries may have been subjected in
the past or present
to exploitation, colonialism, neocolonialism or imperialism.

Resource-rich countries, mainly of Europe, ruled over many parts of

the world and accumulated enormous wealth. Moreover, they
overexploited the natural resources of their colonies and increased
many socio-economic and environmental problems in those
countries.

Today, we live in the world of haves and have-nots; few live in

increasing luxury, while many others lack the basic necessities for
healthy, productive life. The throw away attitude and luxurious
lifestyle of the ‘haves’ not only increase their consumption rate but
also the rate of waste generation and environmental degradation.

 
  40

1 % of the world population own 40 % of the global assets.

The richest 2 % of the world population own more than 51 % of
the global assets and the richest 10 % own 85 % of the global
assets.
The GDP (Gross Domestic Product) of the 41 Heavily Indebted
Poor Countries (567 million people) is less than the wealth of
the world’s 7 richest people combined.
50 % of the world population own less than 1 % of the global
assets.
Some 2 to 3.5 billion people have micronutrient
deficiency (deficiency of vitamins and minerals);
Yet, some 1.2 billion suffer from obesity (excess of fats and salt,
often accompanied by deficiency of vitamins and minerals);

According to the UNDP Human Development Report (HDR) 2005'the

richest 50 individuals in the world have a combined income greater
than that of the poorest 416 million. The 2.5 billion people living on
less than $2 a day and 40% of the world’s population receive only 5%
of global income, while 54% of global income goes to the richest 10%

The global inequality is so strong that about 20% of the global

population enjoys a life of wasteful luxuriance whereas the later
80% live under conditions of utter poverty and scarcity. In other
words, the greater number of people in the most populous
developing countries, the smaller number in the developed
countries use more resources and energy than those in the
developing world.

The difference between Switzerland’s per capita income of $40,080

and Ethiopia’s $100 is striking, to say the least. Indeed the gap
between the affluent and deprived economies in the global
economy is so great that if one were to add the per capita GNP of
50 Least Development Countries (LDC), it does not exceed half of
the per capita income of one of the developed countries. In Kenya,
50.2% of the population lives below $1 a day poverty line, while
78.1% below $2 a day. In Zambia, the figures are even more
dramatic. 84.6% live below $1 a day and 98.1% below $2.

The global economic disparity among nations is accompanied by

equally devastating inequality within the nation-state. In 31
countries, less than 20% of the population controls more than 50%
of the national wealth. In Thailand, for instance, 20% of the Thai
population controls 52.7% of economic resources. In Brazil and
South Africa, the richest 20% control 64.2% and 64.8%
respectively, while the richest 10% control 47.8 and 45.9%. Even in
impoverished countries such as Kenya, Madagascar, and Senegal,
the richest 20% have disproportionate control over the economy

 
  41

that amounts to 50%, 52%, and 57.9% of national resources

respectively.

Consider the following to understand global inequalities:

Global Priority $U.S. Billions
Cosmetics in the United States 8
Ice cream in Europe 11
Perfumes in Europe and the United States 12
Pet foods in Europe and the United States 17
Business entertainment in Japan 35
Cigarettes in Europe 50
Alcoholic drinks in Europe 105
Narcotics drugs in the world 400
Military spending in the world 780

Compare the above with the estimated cost to achieve universal

access to basic social services in all developing countries:
Global Priority $U.S. Billions
Basic education for all 6
Water and sanitation for all 9
Reproductive health for all women 12
Basic health and nutrition 13
(Source: The state of human development, United Nations Human
Development Report 1998, Chapter 1, p.37)
While the sources of the growing economic gap are multifarious,
policies and decisions made by developed countries are one
important and crucial source. For example, developed countries—
particularly the G-7 countries—continue to use tariff and non-tariff
measures to bock import from resource-poor countries. This is
particularly so with regard to products that originates in Africa and
the Middle East. Tariff average on textile fibers and garments
produced in African and Middle Eastern countries are four times
higher than those imposed on similar products from G-7 countries.
For globalization to bring about a stable global economy and
political cooperation, the G-7 in general, and the United State in
particular, must adopt more positive trade policies toward
developing countries. G-7 countries should not insist on achieving
free trade in the sense of forcing developing economy to open their
market to products produced in by international capital, but must
pursue a fair trade policy that ensure mutual benefits for both
developing and developed courtiers.

 
  42

Opportunities in richer countries drive talent away from poorer

countries, leading to brain drains. Brain drain has cost the African
continent over $4.1 billion in the employment of 150,000 expatriate
professionals annually. Indian students going abroad for their
higher studies costs India a foreign exchange outflow of $10 billion
annually.

The world today is so interconnected that a flood of consumer

goods such as televisions, radios, bicycles, and textiles into the
United States, Europe, and Japan has helped fuel the economic
expansion of Asian tiger economies in recent decades. In South
Africa, some 300,000 textile workers have lost their jobs due to the
influx of Chinese goods.

It can be said that globalization is the door that opens up an

otherwise resource-poor country to the international market. If a
country has little material or physical product harvested or mined
from its own soil, large corporations see an opportunity to take
advantage of the "export poverty" of such a nation. Where the
majority of the earliest occurrences of economic globalization are
recorded as being the expansion of businesses and corporate
growth, in many poorer nations globalization is actually the result of
the foreign businesses investing in the country to take advantage of
the lower wage rate. Most countries of Europe and North America,
which are economically and technologically more advanced, not
only exploited their own resources rapidly but also the resources of
the developing countries to grow larger economies. So as
development progressed, the rich countries got richer and while
poor nations became poorer.

This unequal distribution of wealth and access to land and its

resources at both national and global level is a serious
environmental concern. There is a direct relation between the
economic development and resource exploitation and the waste
generated in the environment. Moreover, both affluence of
developed countries and the poverty of underdeveloped countries
are injurious to the life support systems of our planet.
The amount of waste generated depends upon the level of
economic development of the countries. With sophisticated
technology, capital-rich advance countries extract more resources
and generate waste on a very large scale.

 
   43

ENVIRONMENT ENVIRONMENT AS A SOURCE OF RESOURCES

ADVANCED
DEVELOPING
COUNTRIESS
COUNTRIES
CHECK YOUR PROGRESS
a) Explain the term resource- rich country. Give
examples.
DISCARDED WASTE
b) Which(BIODEGEDABLE
countries &NON-BIODEGRADABLE)
are poor in terms of resources and
why?

Differentiate between resource-rich and resource-poor

countries.

2.4 LET US SUM UP

Natural resources are the endowments extracted from nature and
can be used directly or after processing to sustain human societies.
They are classified on the basis of their chemical nature, availability
or abundance, occurrence, origin etc.

They are created through the interaction between nature, man and
his cultural progress and therefore are not uniformly developed in
the world. The countries that are economically well developed and
therefore have an ability to produce large number of resources are
called resource rich countries while the rest where poverty is
widespread are called resource-poor countries.

Technologically advanced countries have developed large number

of resources and are enjoying luxurious lifestyle, at times at the cost
of resource-poor countries. They are not only exploiting their own
resources rapidly but also used the natural resources of so called
poor countries to grow even larger economies. This unequal use of
resources is not a healthy trend. The Earth cannot be expected to
indefinitely sustain the expanding level of utilization of resources.
Added to this is the misuse of resources. It is unsustainable for life
support systems and consequently for the global economic system.
However, even the developed world has began to realize that their
lives being seriously affected by the environmental consequences
of development based on the economic growth alone and this type
of development do not add to the quality of life as the environmental
conditions are deteriorating.

 
  44

The disparity or gap between the haves and have-nots is becoming

a serious issue both at national and international levels and is made
worse by the unsustainable development strategy.

We have to build a sustainable world – a world that should last

forever. There should be fair sharing of resources. Everyone should
get at least basic amenities – food, clothing and shelter – in such a
way that there should be no damage to the environment. The
resources if properly managed, distributed and utilized
economically, are sufficient for all living beings.

2.5 GLOSSARY
Emerging and developing economies according to
the International Monetary Fund's World Economic Outlook Report,
October 2009.--- Afghanistan Albania, Algeria, Angola, Antigua and
Barbuda, Argentina, Armenia, The Bahamas, Bahrain Bangladesh,
Belarus, Belize, Benin, Bhutan, Bolivia, Botswana, Bosnia and
Herzegovina, Brazil, Bulgaria, Burkina Faso, Burma, Burundi,
Cameroon, Cape Verde, Central African Republic, Chad, Chile,
China, Colombia, Comoros, Democratic Republic of the Congo,
Costa Rica, Côte d'Ivoire, Croatia, Djibouti, Dominica, Dominican
Republic, Ecuador, Egypt, El Salvador, Equatorial Guinea, Eritrea,
Ethiopia, Fiji, Gabon, The Gambia, Georgia, Ghana, Grenada,
Guatemala, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Guyana, Haiti, Honduras,
Hungary, Indonesia, India, Iran, Iraq, Jamaica, Jordan, Kazakhstan,
Kenya, Kiribati, Kuwait, Kyrgyzstan, Laos, Latvia, Lebanon,
Lesotho, Liberia, Libya, Lithuania, Macedonia, Madagascar,
Malawi, Malaysia, Maldives, Mali, Marshall Islands, Mauritania,
Mauritius,
Mexico, Micronesia, Moldova, Mongolia, Montenegro, Morocco,
Mozambique, Namibia, Nauru, Nepal, Nicaragua, Niger,
Nigeria, Oman, Pakistan, Palau, Panama, Papua New
Guinea, Paraguay, Peru,
Philippines, Poland, Qatar, Romania, Russia, Rwanda, Saudi
Arabia, Samoa, São Tomé and Príncipe, Senegal, Serbia,
Seychelles, Sierra Leone, Solomon Islands, South Africa, Somalia,
Sri Lanka, Saint Kitts and Nevis, Saint Lucia, Saint Vincent and the
Grenadines, Sudan, Suriname, Swaziland, Syria, Tajikistan,
Tanzania, Thailand, Timor-Leste, Togo, Tonga, Tunisia, Turkey,
Turkmenistan, Tuvalu, Uganda, Ukraine, United Arab Emirates,
Uruguay, Uzbekistan, Vanuatu, Venezuela, Vietnam, Yemen,
Zambia, Zimbabwe.

OECD -- As of 2010, the High-income OECD membership includes

-- Austria, Greece, Norway, Portugal, Hungary, Belgium, Czech
Republic, Iceland, Slovakia, Denmark, Ireland, Spain, Finland,
Italy, Sweden, France, Luxembourg, Switzerland, Germany,
Netherlands, United Kingdom, South Korea, Canada, United

 
  45

States, Australia, New Zealand,

2.6 SUGGESTIVE READING

7. Erach Bharucha, 2005 – Textbook of Environmental Studies for
Undergraduate courses, University Press
8. S.P. Misra and S.N. Pandey, 2010 – Essential Environmental
Studies, Ane Books Pvt Ltd.
9. D. K. Asthana and Meera Asthana, 2007 – A Textbook of
Environmental Studies, S. Chand
10. Rashmi Desai,2010 – Environmental Studies, Vipul Prakashan

2.7 Unit End Exercises

1. Which elements of environment are called natural resources?
Why?
2. Note down the various ways in which natural resources are
classified.
3. Differentiate between resource-rich and resource-poor
countries.
4. Comment on the resource production and consumption in
resource- rich countries.
5. Explain the problems faced by the resource-poor countries.
6. ‘The gap between resource-rich and resource-poor countries is
widening.’ Explain
7. Write short notes on
a) Potential resources
b) Human resource
c) Renewable resources
d) Global inequality in resource consumption

 
  46

3
DISTRIBUTION, UTILISATION AND
CONSERVATION OF WATER, FOREST
AND ENERGY RESOURCES

Unit Structure:
3.0 Objectives
3.1 Introduction
3.2 Water Resource
  3.2.1 Water Resource – Distribution Pattern
  3.2.2 Water Resources – Utilisation
  3.2.3 Water Resources – Conservation
3.3 Forest Resources
3.3.1 Forest Resources -- Distribution Pattern
  3.3.2 Forest Resources – Utilisation
3.3.3 Forest Resources – Conservation
3.4 Energy Resources
  3.4.1 Energy Resources – Distribution And Utilisation
3.4.2 Sources Of Energy
  3.4.3 Energy Resources – Conservation
3.5 Let Us Sum Up
3.6 Suggestive Reading
3.7 Unit End Exercises

3.0 OBJECTIVES

1. To understand the nature of important natural resources

mainly water, forest and energy
2. To evaluate their value in the human societies
3. To understand their present status in the world
4. To suggest measure to conserve these resources for their
sustainability

 
  47

3.1 INTRODUCTION
Natural resources are getting depleted very fast. In the 20th century,
rapidly increasing population, culture of consumerism and
materialism increased the demand for wide variety of resources.
Secondly, sophistication of technology increased the rate and scale
of exploitation of resources e.g. in the past, it could take long hours
just to cut down one tree only using saws but now within few
minutes logs are piled up on the ground. With the same rate of
exploitation many resources will be depleted or reach to the stage
of extinction. Therefore, careful and rational use of resources is
necessary to assure sustainable production of these resources in
the nature. Over consumption, over exploitation of resources is
harmful not only to natural ecosystems but also to the production
sector of the human societies.
Conservation is defined as careful and rational use of natural
resources and their preservation from reckless exploitation.

• Reduce wastage of electricity, fuel and food.

• Encourage the use of environment friendly and renewable
sources of energy like solar energy, wind energy and tidal
energy.
• Establish sanctuaries for endangered wildlife.
• Stop exploitation of areas rich in biodiversity.
• Encourage planting of trees.
• Reduce usage of plastic since it is not biodegradable.
• Stop overfishing.
• Encourage organic agriculture.
• Polluting industries should be closed.
• Discourage harmful genetic engineering.
• Recycle garbage.
• Aggressive family planning to limit human population.
• Elect leaders who work for the environment.
• Promote the development and use of environment friendly
technologies.

3.2 WATER RESOURCE

Water is a precious natural resource vital, for sustaining all life on

the earth. It is not uniformly distributed in time and space. Due to its
multiple benefits and the problems created by its excesses,
shortages and quality deterioration, water as a resource requires
special attention.

On a global scale, the hydrological cycle moves enormous

quantities of water in all the four spheres of environment. Solar

 
  48

energy initiates water cycle. Evaporation from surface water bodies

like oceans, rivers and lakes and transpiration from plants result in
cloud formation. As and when these moisture bearing clouds come
across the cool air, condensation takes place in the atmosphere
and there occurs rainfall or snowfall. Hydrological cycle controls the
temporal and spatial distribution of renewable freshwater.

3.2.1 WATER RESOURCE – DISTRIBUTION PATTERN

Earth is called wet planet. But of the total volume of water available
on the earth, 97% is in vast oceans leaving only 3% as fresh water
of which slightly over two thirds is frozen in glaciers and polar ice
caps. The remaining unfrozen water is mainly found as
groundwater, with only a small fraction present above ground or in
the air.

Water in the ocean – ocean contains 97% of water but the water
has high concentration of salts. Pacific Ocean is the deepest and
widest among all oceans followed by Atlantic and Indian Ocean.
Arctic Ocean surrounds North Pole and is completely frozen.

Water on the land surface – water in the rivers, streams, springs,

lakes and ponds are the sources of fresh water utilized in the
human societies. Water locked up in the glaciers is also an
important source because in areas where the glaciers melt in the
summer season they feed water to the rivers. E.g. rivers in North
India like Ganga, Yamuna that originate in Himalaya.
Fresh water is a renewable resource, yet the world's supply of
clean, fresh water is steadily decreasing. Water demand
already exceeds supply in many parts of the world and as the world
population continues to rise, so too does the water demand.
Awareness of the global importance of
preserving water for ecosystem services has only recently emerged
as, during the 20th century, more than half the world’s
wetlands have been lost along with their valuable environmental
services.

3.2.2 WATER RESOURCES – UTILISATION

Agricultural

In some areas of the world, irrigation is necessary to grow any crop

at all, in other areas it permits more profitable crops to be grown or
enhances crop yield. Irrigation methods such as
overhead sprinkler irrigation are usually less expensive but are also
typically less efficient, because much of the water evaporates, runs

 
  49

off or drains below the root zone. Other irrigation methods

considered to be more efficient include drip or trickle irrigation and
some types of sprinkler systems where the sprinklers are operated
near ground level. These types of systems, while more expensive,
usually offer greater potential to minimize runoff, drainage and
evaporation.

Aquaculture is a small but growing agricultural use of water.

Freshwater commercial fisheries may also be considered as
agricultural uses of water.

As global populations grow, and as demand for food increases in a

world with a fixed water supply, there are efforts underway to learn
how to produce more food with less water, through improvements in
irrigation methods and technologies, agricultural water
management, crop types, and water monitoring.

Industrial
It is estimated that 22% of worldwide water use is industrial. Major
industrial users include power plants, which use water for cooling or
as a power source (i.e. hydroelectric plants), ore and oil refineries,
which use water in chemical processes, and manufacturing plants,
which use water as a solvent.

The portion of industrial water usage that is consumptive varies

widely, but as a whole is lower than agricultural use.

Water is used in power generation. Hydroelectricity is electricity

obtained from hydropower. Hydroelectric power comes from water
driving a water turbine connected to a generator. Hydroelectricity is
a low-cost, non-polluting, renewable energy source. The energy is
supplied by the sun. Heat from the sun evaporates water, which
condenses as rain in higher altitudes, from where it flows down.

Very high pressure water guns are used for precise cutting. It works
very well, is relatively safe, and is not harmful to the environment. It
is also used in the cooling of machinery to prevent over-heating, or
prevent saw blades from over-heating.Water is also used in many
industrial processes and machines, such as the steam turbine and
heat exchanger, in addition to its use as a chemical solvent.
Discharge of untreated water from industrial uses is pollution.
Pollution includes discharged solutes (chemical pollution) and
discharged coolant water (thermal pollution). Industry requires pure
water for many applications and utilizes a variety of purification
techniques both in water supply and discharge.

 
  50

Household
It is estimated that 8% of worldwide water use is for household
purposes. These include drinking water, bathing, cooking,
sanitation, and gardening.

As the trend towards urbanization is accelerating, there has been

intensive use of water. Urbanization requires significant investment
in water infrastructure in order to deliver water to individuals and to
process the concentrations of wastewater – both from individuals
and from business.

Recreation
Recreational water use is usually a very small but its importance is
growing due to various factors linked with urbanization. With
growing popularity of tourism, use of water for recreation e.g.
swimming clubs, water parks, waterfalls in rock gardens, boating
etc is gaining importance.

The total global water use has steadily increased throughout

recorded history. The trend observed in 20th century is alarming. A
quarter of world’s population lacks adequate clean drinking water &
about half lack effective sanitation. In some countries problem is
access to clean water. In Mali, for example, 88% of population lacks
clean water; in Ethiopia, it is 94%. Rural people have less access to
clean water than urban people.

3.2.3 WATER RESOURCES – CONSERVATION

In 2000, the world population was 6.2 billion. The UN estimates that
by 2050 there will be an additional 3.5 billion people with most of
the growth in developing countries that already suffer water stress.

Due to the expanding human population, competition for water is

growing such that many of the world’s major aquifers are becoming
depleted. This is due both for direct human consumption as well as
agricultural irrigation by groundwater. Millions of pumps of all sizes
are currently extracting groundwater throughout the world. Irrigation
in dry areas such as northern China and India is supplied by
groundwater, and is being extracted at an unsustainable rate. Cities
that have experienced aquifer drops between 10 to 50 meters
include Mexico City, Bangkok, Manila, Beijing, Chennai and
Shanghai.

Gradual reductions over time in the quality and/or quantity of fresh

water can add to the instability of a region by depleting the health of
a population, obstructing economic development, and exacerbating
larger conflicts.

 
  51

Conflicts and tensions over water are most likely to arise within
national borders, in the downstream areas of
distressed river basins. Areas such as the lower regions
of China's Yellow River or the Chao Phraya River in Thailand, for
example, have already been experiencing water stress for several
years. Additionally, certain arid countries which rely heavily on
water for irrigation, such as China, India, Iran, and Pakistan, are
particularly at risk of water-related conflicts.

Why Water is Scarce?

• Increase in water requirements due to increase in population
• Easily available sources of water tapped already
• Delay in project initiation time due to increasing social and
environmental concern
• Contamination of available water sources due to increase in
human activities
• Industrial development
• Human needs and desire for higher standards of living

Conservation of water is therefore, necessary. Nearly 5000 cubic

km annual global fresh water use is extraordinarily high as
compared to past consumption and this indicates that we are
moving towards an era of serious water crisis.

Causes of water shortages include natural deficits,

overconsumption by agriculture and industry and inadequate funds
for purifying and delivering good water. As population grows, more
people move into cities, and agriculture and industry compete for
increasingly scarce water supplies, water shortages are expected to
become even worse. The United Nation cautions that, if present
trends continue, some 2/3rds of the world’s population will live in
countries experiencing water shortages by 2025.

Some ancient Indian methods of water conservation

The Indus Valley Civilization, that flourished along the banks of the
river Indus and other parts of western and northern India about
5,000 years ago, had one of the most sophisticated urban water
supply and sewage systems in the world. One of the oldest water
harvesting systems is found about 130 km from Pune along
Naneghat in the Western Ghats. A large number of tanks were cut
in the rocks to provide drinking water to tradesmen who used to
travel along this ancient trade route. Each fort in the area had its
own water harvesting and storage system in the form of rock-cut
cisterns, ponds, tanks and wells that are still in use today. A large
number of forts like Raigad had tanks that supplied water. In

 
  52

ancient times, houses in parts of western Rajasthan were built so

that each had a rooftop water harvesting system. Rainwater from
these rooftops was directed into underground tanks. This system
can be seen even today in all the forts, palaces and houses of the
region. Underground baked earthen pipes and tunnels to maintain
the flow of water and to transport it to distant places, are still
functional at Burhanpur in Madhya Pradesh, Golkunda and Bijapur
in Karnataka, and Aurangabad in Maharashtra.

Rainwater harvesting

In urban areas, the construction of houses, footpaths and roads has

left little exposed earth for water to soak in. In parts of the rural
areas of India, floodwater quickly flows to the rivers, which then dry
up soon after the rains stop. If this water can be held back, it can
seep into the ground and recharge the groundwater supply.

This has become a very popular method of conserving water

especially in the urban areas. Rainwater harvesting essentially
means collecting rainwater on the roofs of building and storing it
underground for later use. Not only does this recharging arrest
groundwater depletion, it also raises the declining water table and
can help augment water supply. You can direct water run-off from
this surface to plants, trees or lawns or even to the aquifer.

Rainwater harvesting and artificial recharging are becoming very

important issues. It is essential to stop the decline in groundwater
levels, arrest sea-water ingress, i.e. prevent sea-water from moving
landward, and conserve surface water run-off during the rainy
season.
Some of the benefits of rainwater harvesting are as follows:

• Increases water availability.

• Checks the declining water table
• It is environment friendly
• Improves the quality of groundwater through the dilution of
fluoride, nitrate, and salinity.
• Prevents soil erosion and flooding especially in urban areas

Once Cherrapunji was famous for the largest volume of rainfall in

the world, but today experiences acute water shortages. This is
mainly the result of extensive deforestation. There has been
extensive soil erosion and often, despite the heavy rainfall and its
location in the hills of Meghalaya, one can see stretches of hillside
devoid of trees and greenery. People have to walk long distances to
collect water.

 
  53

Agriculture
Conservation of water in the agricultural sector is essential since
water is necessary for the growth of plants and crops. A depleting
water-table and a rise in salinity due to overuse of chemical
fertilizers and pesticides has made matters serious. Various
methods of water harvesting and recharging are being applied all
over the world to tackle the problem.

In areas where rainfall is low and water is scarce, the local people
have used simple techniques that are suited to their region and
reduce the demand for water.

In India's arid and semi-arid areas, the 'tank' system is traditionally

the backbone of agricultural production. Tanks are constructed
either by bunding or by excavating the ground and collecting
rainwater. Rajasthan, located in the Great Indian Desert, receives
hardly any rainfall, but people have adapted to the harsh conditions
by collecting whatever rain falls. Large bunds to create reservoirs
known as khadin, dams called johads, tanks, and other methods
were applied to check water flow and accumulate run-off. At the
end of the monsoon season, water from these structures was used
to cultivate crops. Similar systems were developed in other parts of
the country. These are known by various local names ¾ jal talais in
Uttar Pradesh, the haveli system in Madhya Pradesh, ahar in Bihar,
and so on.

Reducing water demand

Simple techniques can be used to reduce the demand for water.
Therefore, by improving the efficiency of water use, and by
reducing its loss due to evaporation, we can reduce water demand.
There are many effective ways to conserve water in and around
your home.

 
  54

1. Put a plastic bottle or a plastic bag weighted with pebbles and

filled with water in your toilet tank. It allows you to use less
water with each flush.
2. If you're taking a shower, don't waste cold water while waiting
for hot water to reach the shower head. Catch that water in a
container to use on your outside plants or to flush your toilet.
3. Only wash your clothes if you have a full load to do.
4. Turn off the water when brushing your teeth, washing your
face, shaving, etc.
5. Take shorter showers! This will save between 5 and 10 gallons
of water per minute.
6. Don't flush any type of garbage down the toilet. Every flush
uses around 7 gallons of water!
7. When washing dishes, use a full sink of warm water instead of
running the faucet continuously.
8. Check toilet for leaks.
9. Use water only when required while brushing your teeth,
shaving and washing clothes and utensils.
10. When washing dishes by hand, use the least amount of
detergent possible. This minimizes rinse water needed.
11. Don't defrost frozen foods with running water.

Check your progress:

a) What are the various sources of freshwater? Comment on
their utilization?
b) State the reasons for overutilization of water.
c) What are the various methods to conserve water in the rural
area?
d) Is it necessary to conserve water? Suggest measures.
e) Write short notes on the following:
1. Rainwater harvesting
2. Freshwater on earth
3. Importance of water

 
  55

3.3 FOREST RESOURCES

Forests contain about 90% of biomass and cover about one- third
of the land area of the earth. They not only produce innumerable
material goods, but also provide various environmental services
that are essential for life.

3.3.1 FOREST RESOURCES -- DISTRIBUTION PATTERN

Forest type Features Species Areas

Equatorial Dense Mahogany Congo basin of
rainforest or evergreen forest Ebony Africa, Amazon
tropical hardwood Tall trees Rosewood basin of America
forest Large and thick Rubber
leaves
Monsoon forest Deciduous forest Teak, India,
sal, Burma,
bamboo, Thailand, northern
sandalwood coastline of Australia
Temperate Deciduous forest Oak, Elm,Western and central
hardwood forest Europe,
Magnolia, poplar,
olive Appalachian
mountains and north
plains in USA,
central China, Japan
and Australia
Temperate Coniferous forest Pine, spruce, Siberia, north
softwood forest or cedar, hemlock European Russia,
Taiga Norway, Sweden,
Finland, Canada
and North-eastern
part of USA

3.3.2 FOREST RESOURCES – UTILISATION

Forests are being utilized in the human societies to accrue many
benefits – economic and ecological. Forests provide many
important natural resources – from timber to paper to medicinal
plants. They purify the air we breathe, help sustain the quality and
availability of freshwater supplies, and regulate local and global
climate by absorbing carbon dioxide from the atmosphere. Yet
nearly 36 million acres of natural forest is lost each year. This rapid
forest loss is having devastating consequences for the
environment, and the wildlife and communities that depend on
forests for their survival.

 
  56

Fuel wood is the major forest produce. It account for almost half of
all wood harvested worldwide. About 58% of total energy used in
Africa and about 42% in south-East Asia comes from fuel wood.

The logs, the round wood and timber are used for construction of
houses, furniture, ship building, sports goods, toys etc. We also use
wood for making paper, plywood and other articles of industrial
importance. Developed countries produce less than half of
industrial wood but account for about 80% of its consumption.

Non-wood produce from the forest includes medicinal plants,

spices, resins, lac etc

Developments in human civilization are associated with removal of

forest cover to meet various requirements. After technological
revolution of 20th century, world’s forest areas are shrinking
rapidly.FAO estimates that 4.6 million hectares of rainforest and 6.1
million hectares of moist deciduous forest were converted to other
land uses each year during the 1980s. Rainforest loss was highest
in Asia at 2.2 million hectares per year, followed closely by Latin
America and the Caribbean at 1.9 million hectares per year.

Causes of deforestation
1. Unprecedented growth of world’s population – There is a
trend of conversion of forest land for agriculture and other
uses.
2. Demand for fuel wood is tremendously increasing in the poor
people of the developing countries. About 1.5 billion people
in the world depend on fuel wood for their energy
requirement.
3. Very high demand from industrial sector – excessive use of
wood for building construction, furniture, plywood, paper and
many other products demanded in the modern societies is
responsible for commercial logging that involves reckless
exploitation etc.
4. Development projects – forest have under gone massive
destructions for various development projects such as dams,
river valley projects, reservoirs, hydroelectric project,
construction of highways road ways, railways, irrigation
cannels. Moreover much before construction of these
development projects, lot of forest land is cleared for
residence of there workers.
5. Overgrazing—animals trample the seedlings and cause
compaction of soil so that its water storing capacity is
decreased and run off capacity is increased the combine
effects leads to soil erosion and deforestation.
6. Quarrying and mining operations – they cause great damage
to vegetation to large areas due to mine dusts, transportation
of ORE and mine wastes.

 
  57

7. Forest fires – either natural of man made forest fire is

unexpected or unregulated of vegetation spreading over
forest area

Forest degradation and fragmentation diminish biological diversity.

The removal of certain species, for instance, can affect the lifecycle
of others. Indeed, many plant and animal populations can't live
indefinitely in fragmented habitat.

3.3.3 FOREST RESOURCES – CONSERVATION

The Forest loss often results in habitat degradation, species
extinctions, disruption in natural water balance and an overall
compromise of the ecological integrity of the landscape and
therefore forest conservation is very necessary.

Methods of forest conservation

1. Afforestation -- It involves extensive planting of trees to save

diminishing forest cover. Afforestation restores ecological
balance, maintains biodiversity, acts as catchments for soil,
conserves water, prevents floods, safe guards future of
tribals and leaves the forest resources for future generation.
2. Intensive plantation – it refers to raising the plants on the
available land form villager’s field to community land, to road
railways sides etc i.e. on every available space. Such
programs will meet the need of timber, fuel, fodder, food,
medicine, etc
3. Social forestry – it is a new concept about multi disciplinary
activity that involves diverse land uses and different groups.
It requires political support. The aims of social forestry r to be
attuned through farm forestry rural forestry and urban
forestry. Farm forestry includes combining agriculture with
forestry to meet the requirement fuel wood, small timber and
extra in come to the farmer.
Rural forestry involves raising tree crops on community
lands, panchayat lands along transport lines, tanks, ponds,
etc. Rural forestry requires mass scale involvement to rural
people it can encourage cottage industries such as silk,
honey, household furniture, agricultural implements, toys,
etc. Thus social forestry is of great help not only to increase
forest cover but also to bring in prosperity.
Urban forestry is the aesthetic development of urban areas
that involves ornamental plants and trees along the roads in
the parks and picnic spots. Green belts around cities are
also part of urban forestry.
4. Agro forestry – It involves variety of land uses where woody
species are grown in combination with crops either at the
same time or in rotation it results in production of fuel wood

 
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timber fodder etc. and thus provide many sources of income

for the farmer.

Check your progress

1. Comment on the major types of forests of the world.
2. State the causes of deforestation

3.4 ENERGY RESOURCES

The term ‘energy’ is the capacity to do work. Energy is an essential
input for the economic development and improvement of quality of
life. All terrestrial energy sources except nuclear, geothermal
and tidal are from current solar insolation or from fossil remains of
plant and animal life that relied directly and indirectly upon sunlight,
respectively.

Energy resources are basically divided as fuels and power. Fuels,

on burning, produce heat which can be transformed into power.
Wood, coal, mineral oil, natural gas, alcohol, nuclear minerals like
uranium, thorium are examples of fuels. Utilization of the motive
force of the source denote power e.g. energy obtained from running
water, winds, tides, geothermal sources, solar radiation etc.

About 24% of the energy consumed globally, is used for

transportation, 40% for industries, 30% for domestic and
commercial purposes and the rest 6% for other uses including
agriculture.

Technologically advanced societies have become increasingly

dependent on external energy sources for transportation, the
production of many manufactured goods, and the delivery of energy
services. This energy allows people who can afford the cost to live
under otherwise unfavorable climatic conditions through the use
of heating, ventilation, and/or air conditioning. Level of use of
external energy sources, however, differs across societies.

3.4.1 ENERGY RESOURCES – DISTRIBUTION AND

UTILISATION
In many poorer countries biomass supplies more than 90% of the
energy used for heating and cooking whereas nuclear power makes
up nearly 20% of all electric power produced in advance countries.
About 2 billion people, one third of the global population living in
developing countries, lack access to adequate energy supply.
Three billion people in the world depend on fuel wood, coal,
charcoal, dung and kerosene etc. for cooking and heating. India
with 16% of world’s population, accounts for just 3% of the total
energy consumption of which 1/3rd comes from biomass. On the

 
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other hand, developed countries, with 25% of the global population,

account for 70% of commercial energy consumption. USA with just
4.6% of world’s population consumes 24% of the total commercial
energy produced and is the largest consumer of energy in the
world. There is a wide disparity in energy consumption in the world.

Following linkage diagram explains the energy intensive nature of

advanced countries.

 
Advanced COUNTRIES 

LARGESCALE  HIGH  
INDUSTRIALISATION
INTENSIVE 
EXTENSIVE TECHNOLOGY 
BASED URBANISATION USE  

OF  
MASSIVE SCALE OF 
DOMESTIC AND  ENERGY 

LUXURIOUS, TECHNO‐BASED 

 MODERN LIFESTYLE OF RICH 
CONSUMERS 

3.4.2 SOURCES OF ENERGY

Broadly, energy sources can be classified as renewable and non-
renewable.

The renewable energy sources are regenerated in natural process

so that they can be used indefinitely. These sources cause limited
or no environmental impact as compared to non-renewable sources
such as fossil fuels and nuclear energy. Secondly, with the present
level of technology, generation of renewable energy is more
expensive than non-renewable sources.

Among the renewable sources most common and easily accessible

is solar energy. The other sources are hydro-power, wind,
geothermal, ocean wave and tidal energy. Non-renewable sources
include nuclear energy and fossil fuels i.e. coal, crude oil and
natural gas.

 
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Non – renewable sources of energy

These sources are those natural resources which are exhaustible

and cannot be replaced once they are used. These are available in
limited amount and are replenished over a long period. Fossil fuels
– coal, crude oil and natural gas and nuclear fuels are the non-
renewable energy sources. Moreover as the industrial development
in the world is totally dependent on fossil fuels, they are being used
for a very long time in the human societies and therefore they are
called conventional sources of energy. They now provide about
85% of all commercial energy in the world.

Fossil fuels are formed by the incomplete biological decomposition

of the remains of plants and animals which got buried under the
earth’s crust millions of years ago. Since their stock is limited and
they take a long time to be formed, they need to be used with great
care.
Coal: With the present rate of consumption, the coal reserves are
likely to last during next 200 years and if the rate increases by two
percent , then it will last only for next 65 years. The coal is mainly of
three types: anthracite, bituminous and lignite.

Coal is largely used for thermal power, industries, transportation

and for domestic sector. Coal is dominant in the production of
electricity,

Distribution of coal reserves in the world

Europe 24%
Asia 24%
North and Central 23%
America
Former USSR 15%
Africa 7%
Oceania 6%
South America 1%

Mineral oil -- oil is the world's primary transportation fuel. It is the

lifeline of global economy. But the distribution is highly localized.
About 70% of the global petroleum reserves are in few countries
namely Saudi Arabia, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Algeria, Libya, Algeria,
Nigeria, Qatar, UAE and Venezuela. These oil rich countries have
formed ‘Organization of Petroleum Exporting Countries (OPEC) and
increased the oil price. The price rise directly affected transportation
cost and lead to inflation in many countries.
Oil reserves

 
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Saudi Arabia 25.3%

Iraq 9.5%
kuwait 9.5%
Iran 9%
UAE 8.8%
venezuela 7%
Mexico 4.9%
Former USSR 4.7%
USA 2.8%
Others 18.5%

Natural gas-- natural gas occurs in association with petroleum in

the uppermost part of an oil trap. It is composed of methane with
small amounts of propane and ethane. Liquidified Petroleum Gas is
used as domestic fuel for cooking. Compressed natural gas is used
as an alternative to petrol and diesel for transport of vehicles.
Natural gas reserves

Former USSR 41%

Middle East 31%
Africa 7%
Asia /Oceania 7%
North &Central America 6%
South America 4%
Europe 4%

Natural gas use, most commonly for heating, is growing quickly;

however, while cleaner and less carbon intensive than coal and oil,
natural gas also emits significant amounts of carbon dioxide.

Nuclear power -- The primary source for nuclear energy generation,

the uranium and thorium, are non-renewable rare elements. Their
stock is very limited. USA and Canada are the leading producers of
uranium but it also occurs in Russia, Germany, Spain, Sweden,
South Africa, Australia etc. thorium occurs in Brazil, Australia,
Malaysia, Sri Lanka etc.

Nuclear energy provides nearly a fifth of the world's electricity. But

concern over safe storage and disposal of radioactive waste, along
with the potential for accidents, radiation contamination and
exposure continues. This concern, along with those opposed to
nuclear energy, has blocked its advancement as a practical and
sustainable energy source.

As human consumption of energy continues to increase, further

research and development will be necessary to produce alternative
and/or renewable sources of energy that are readily available,

 
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affordable, and less harmful to the environment than conventional

fossil fuels. While our dependence on energy is not likely to
decrease, it will be important to foster new innovations in energy
technologies with a larger focus on energy efficiency and
conservation.

With the present rate of the energy use, the future supply appears
to be grim. With the approaching depletion of coal, oil and natural
gas the scientist were forced to developed new sources of
renewable energy besides the existing one.

We need to shift from non-renewable fossil fuels to the new

renewable sources that do not harm the environment. These
include sun, tide, wind and biomass. These are flexible i.e. based
on relatively simple technologies that are accessible and
understood by many people.

Renewable sources of energy

The efforts for the development of renewable sources of energy

involve the use of flow resources that are non-polluting and freely
available in the environment. These renewable sources include
water, winds, solar energy, tides, geothermal etc

The renewable sources – solar, wind geothermal and

hydroelectricity – make up 4 to 5 % of commercial power produced
in the world. Hydro electricity has maximum share.

Renewable energy sources are more than the traditional fossil fuels
and in theory can easily supply the world's energy needs. This
sector is growing significantly since the last years of the 20th
century, Major investors in this field are Germany and China, United
States, Spain, Japan, and India..

Hydel power
Water power has been in use since the period of Roman empire.
Water falling from a height turns turbines at the bottom of dams to
generate electricity. This source is widely used in the world. It
accounts for nearly 25% of the world’s electricity. Countries leading
in production and consumption of hydel power are Japan, USA,
Russia followed by Canada, Norway, New Zealand and
Switzerland.

 
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Wind power
Wind power is in use since Chinese and Persian civilization. It is an
abundant, non-polluting resource and causes minimal
environmental disruption. But harvesting wind energy is possible
only in areas that receive fairly continuous winds such as islands,
coastal areas and mountain pass and it requires expensive storage
during peak production times to offset non-windy periods. As the
world’s conventional fuel prices rise, interest in wind energy is
growing rapidly. The world Meteorological Organization has
estimated that 20 million MW of wind power could commercially
tapped worldwide.

Tidal power
Ocean tides produced by the gravitational force of sun and moon
contain enormous amount of energy. Tidal energy is harnessed by
the construction of a tidal barrage. During high tide the sea water
flows into reservoir of barrage and turns the turbines which in turn
produces electricity by rotating the generators. During low tide,
when the sea water stored in barrage reservoir flows out into sea
and again turns the turbines. Major investors in tidal energy are
Germany, USA, Denmark, Spain and France. India is in the list of
first ten

Ocean thermal energy conversion (OTEC)

The constant source of energy available in the ocean waters can be
tapped to produce electricity. OTEC can be used to desalinate
water also in mineral extraction. India possesses huge potential of
OTEC. The sites are situated off the Indian mainland and near the
islands of Lakshadweep, Andaman and Nicobar.

Solar energy
Among the renewable sources, the easily accessible and most
important is solar energy. About 99.8% of our energy comes from
solar radiation. It can be used for direct heating. Alternatively, the
heat can be converted into electricity.

One of the most promising technologies is direct electricity

generation by photovoltaic cells. Since solar energy is available
everywhere, photovoltaic collectors could provide clean, non-
polluting renewable energy, independent of central power grids and
fuel supply systems. But it consumes land and silicon used in the
production of SPV is polluting. Moreover, solar generation does not
produce electricity at night, which is a particular problem in high
northern and southern latitude countries; energy demand is highest

 
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in winter, while availability of solar energy is lowest. This however,

can be overcome by buying power from countries closer to the
equator during winter months. Globally, solar generation is the
fastest growing source of energy.

Japan, Europe, China, USA and India are the major growing
investors in solar energy. Advances in technology and economies
of scale, along with demand for solutions to global warming, have
led photovoltaic to become the most sustainable source to
replace nuclear and fossil fuels.

Biomass
Biomass fuels such as wood, peat, charcoal, manure, contribute
about 6% of commercial energy. Electricity produced
from biomass sources was estimated at 44 GW for 2005. Biomass
electricity generation increased by over 100% in
Germany, Hungary, the Netherlands, Poland and Spain. In addition
to direct combustion, biomass can be converted into methane or
ethanol. These are clean-burning easily storable and transportable
fuels. These alternative uses of biomass also allow nutrients to be
returned to the soil and help reduce our reliance on expensive,
energy consuming artificial fertilizers.

Biogas
Biogas is produced by anaerobic degradation of animal waste and
also sometimes plant waste, in the presence of water to undergo
biological breakdown of organic matter by bacteria. It is an
environmentally clean technology.

Biogas is a mixture of methane (50% to 60%), carbon dioxide,

hydrogen, nitrogen, hydrogen sulphide and the main component
methane. Biogas is a low cost fuel, clean, cheap and non-polluting
and therefore very useful for rural areas.
Geothermal energy

The natural heat from the interior of the earth can usefully be
converted into energy. This natural heat comes from the fission of
radioactive materials present in the rocks in the interior of the earth.
Presently, there are several geothermal plants in USA, New
Zealand, Russia, Japan and Mexico.

Alternate emerging energy sources for the future

Hydrogen energy -- Hydrogen is the most abundant element in the

universe and can be used in a wide variety of applications, from
portable devices and stationary sources to transportation vehicles
through the use of fuel cells, with the only byproducts being water
and heat. Yet, while it can be manufactured from renewable energy

 
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sources, the majority of hydrogen is produced by processing fossil

fuels which emit pollutants in the process. Hydrogen as a source of
energy is advantageous because it is a clean fuel that can be
produced from water (photolysis) and used for wide range of
applications.

Fuel cells
These are electrochemical devices that convert the chemical
energy of fuel directly and very efficiently into electricity and heat in
combination. The fuel cells are used for power generation, vehicular
application etc. Fuel cells powered buses are already in operation
in Canada and parts of USA.

Alcohol as a source of energy

The use of alcohol as a fuel for internal combustion engines, either
alone or in combination with other fuels, has been given much
attention mainly because of its economic and environmental
advantages over fossil fuels. Both ethane and methane are used for
this purpose. Fuel alcohol can be produced from variety of crops
such as sugarcane, sugar beet, maize, barley, potato, cassava,
sunflower, eucalyptus etc.

Gasohol, a mixture of ethanol and gasoline is a common fuel used

in Brazil and Zimbabwe for vehicles.

Methanol is produced by bacterial anaerobic digestion of organic

waste. It burns at low temperature than gasoline or diesel. It would
facilitate the replacement of bulky radiators by the sleek radiators in
the cars. Moreover, it is a clean non-polluting fuel.

Ethanol can be derived from corn, wheat, potato waste, cheese,

rice straw, urban waste, paper mill waste, sea weeds sugarcane
etc. pure ethanol burns more clearly and therefore suitable for
environmentally conscious transport schemes. Brazil invests
in ethanol production from sugar cane which is now a significant
part of the transportation fuel in that country

Energy plantations –
Certain crops like sugarcane, sugar beet, aquatic weeds like
hyacinth and seaweeds, fast growing trees like cotton wood, poplar
and carbohydrate rich potatoes, cereals etc are grown as energy
plantations. Energy can be produced from them directly by burning
or getting them converted into das by fermentation.

Biodiesel
Bio-diesel production, based on the concept of using vegetable oil
as fuel, was adopted as early as 1895 when Rudolf Diesel
developed the first diesel engine to run on vegetable oil. France is

 
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the leading country in the production of bio-diesel. In 1994,

Biodiesel Development Board came into existence in India. It is
estimated that India will be able to produce 280 metric tons of bio-
diesel by 2012 which will supplement about 41.14% of the total
demand of diesel consumption in the country. Planning commission
of India has recommended two species Jatropha and Karanj for
biodiesel extraction and the commission has launched biodiesel
project in 200 districts in 18 states of India where Jatropha will be
cultivated.

Check your progress

1. Write an account of the growing energy needs in the world.
2. Differentiate between conventional and non-conventional
sources of energy.
3. Evaluate the importance of biomass as a source of energy
4. Short notes on –
a) solar energy
b) biogas,
c) nuclear energy

3.4.3 ENERGY RESOURCES – CONSERVATION

With the advancing technology in the world and ever increasing
demands, the world is becoming more energy insecure and the
economy is threatened unless there are serious measures that will
be taken in the use of energy.

Energy conservation denotes practices that can help to reduce the

level of energy insecurity in the world.
• Denmark and Germany have started to make investments in
solar energy, despite their unfavorable geographic locations.
• Switzerland is planning to cut its energy consumption by
more than half to become a 2000-watt society by 2050 and
• United Kingdom is working towards a zero energy
building standard for all new housing by 2016.
• In 2005, the Swedish government announced the oil phase-
out in Sweden with the intention to become the first country
to break its dependence on fossil fuel by 2020.

One of the best ways to avoid energy shortages and to relieve

environmental and health effects of our current energy technologies
is simply to use less. Moreover, efficient and less energy intensive
industry, transportation and domestic practices can save large
amount of energy. Conservation offers many benefits both to the
society and environment.

 
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• Turn off lights, television sets and computers when not in

use.
• Use stairs instead of elevators
• Use public transport, walk or ride a bicycle.
• Sustainable sources of energy
• Use compact fluorescent bulbs,
• To reduce your energy consumption, set specific energy
reduction goals for example, commit to using 20% less per
month
• Buy energy saving products whereever needed
• Encourage family members to get in the habit of turning off
lights when they leave a room (taping small reminder notes
to light switches can help.
• Avoid the "phantom load". Appliances such as your TV, DVD
player, cell phone charger, etc. consume energy just by
being plugged in. Unplug them when not in use.
• Turn down your thermostat before going to bed. For every
degree you reduce it, you will save 5% on heating.
• Wash your clothes in cold water. It works just as well as
warm water, will keep colors from bleeding, and saves the
energy that would have gone to heating the water!
• Install Compact Fluorescent Light bulbs in your lamps. They
use 1/4 the electricity of a normal bulb.
• Power down your computer when not in use. For desk tops,
turn off the monitor when you aren't using it.

3.5 Let us sum up

Energy resources are the backbone of every nation in the world.

Economic growth, trade, migration of labour, modern lifestyle … all
them need energy resources. At present, the entire world is too
dependent on the fossil fuels as major sources for energy. But
these are non-renewable sources. Once used, these are lost
forever. Therefore, scientists are keen on the development of
renewable sources of the flow category. It is not only necessary to
reduce pollution but also to create a source of energy that is
sustainable.
At present the demand for energy is very high as compared to the
production and therefore rational and careful use of energy
resources is inevitable. We need to conserve energy and for that
purpose we must change our attitude and our lifestyle. Change is
difficult but not impossible. It calls for efforts at all levels –
individual, social and government—so that use of energy can be
rational and equitable.

 
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3.6 SUGGESTIVE READING

11. S.P. Misra and S.N. Pandey, 2010 – Essential
Environmental Studies, Ane Books Pvt Ltd.
12. D. K. Asthana and Meera Asthana, 2007 – A Textbook of
Environmental Studies, S. Chand

3.7 Unit End Exercises

1. What are the major causes of deforestation?

2. Give a brief account of the strategy you would adopt to
conserve energy.
3. Write in brief about the forest wealth of the world
4. Give the list of forest conservation methods.
5. Give an account of energy resources developed in the world.
6. Give the list of conventional sources of energy
7. Why do we need to conserve water?
8. Discuss briefly the various renewable energy sources.
9. What are the major differences between tropical and
temperate forest?
10. State the forest conservation measures.
11. Write short notes on :
a) Social forestry
b) Taiga forest
c) Bio gas
d) Water conservation

 
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4
POPULATION AND ENVIRONMENT
Unit Structure :
4.0 Objectives
4.1 Introduction
4.2 Technology – the concept
4.3 Man environment relationship
4.4 Man and the discourse of technology development
4.5 Effects of technology to mankind
4.6 Population in the world in the historical period
4.7 Why did population grow?
4.8 Population growth in the world
4.9 Factors influencing on population growth & distribution

4.0 OBJECTIVES

Dear students, we should in a position understand the relation

between human being and the environment. Because nature is the
ultimate dais to perform our activities. In the last session we have
understood that --
In this session we are going to keep following as our objectives.

• Understanding the relationship between man and

environment keep an eye on technology as his tool.
• To understand the population scenario in the world, its
distribution and causes.
• To view the expansion of human being as a resource and its
sphere beyond its existence.

4.1 INTRODUCTION
In the earlier unit we have tried to understand how is the distribution
of variety of resources in the world which leads to develop the
human being into a good resource.

However it is interesting to see the discourse of the development of

man in a human resource. The process is diverse region as well as
time wise. All our activities, our thinking and philosophy are centred
at man over the maximum discourse of human civilisation. And
hence, understanding the distribution of human race in the world
over time and space is extremely important. In this unit we are

 
  70

going to see the same.

4.2 TECHNOLOGY – THE CONCEPT

The word "technology" means industrial science and is usually
associated with major activities such as manufacturing,
transportation and communication. Technology has been, in fact,
closely associated with the evolution of man starting with tools,
clothing, fire, shelter and various other basic survival items. The co-
evolution persists and, since basic science is now very much a part
of developing technologies, the term co-evolution of science and
society which is used at times very much implies the co-evolution of
both basic science and industrial science with society.

Technologies significantly affect human as well as other animal

species' ability to control and adapt to their natural environments.
The human species' use of technology began with the conversion of
natural resources into simple tools. The prehistoric discovery of the
ability to control fire increased the available sources of food and the
invention of the wheel helped humans in travelling in and controlling
their environment. Recent technological developments, including
the printing press, the telephone, and the Internet, and other
possible mass media have lessened physical barriers to
communication and allowed humans to interact freely on a global
scale.

Human society in a theoretical way can be bifurcated into science

base and philosophy base. Development of technology is a role of
science base while inculcation of the capacity to absorb the
technology & translating it into wellbeing is a role of philosophy
base; in absence of which being a double edged weapon it may
result into excesses by few over many. And hence, not all
technology has been used for peaceful purposes; the development
of weapons of ever-increasing destructive power has progressed
throughout history, from clubs to nuclear weapons.

Advances in technology are generally accompanied by social

changes as a consequence of changing economies and ways of
carrying out life's various activities. An important question arises
concerning how basic scientific discoveries eventually lead to new
technologies and what that may mean to the rational support of
basic research and the future of science and technology in the
developed and developing world.

Technology has affected society and its surroundings in a number

of ways. In many societies, technology has helped develop more
advanced economies (including today's global economy) and has
allowed the rise of a leisure class. Many technological processes

 
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produce unwanted by-products, known as pollution, and deplete

natural resources, to the detriment of the Earth and its environment.
Various implementations of technology influence the values of a
society and new technology often raises new ethical questions.
Examples include the rise of the notion of efficiency in terms of
human productivity, a term originally applied only to machines, and
the challenge of traditional norms.

There are great uncertainties in the process that starts with basic
research and ends with an economically successful technology.
The successful discovery of a new development in research that
appears to have technological significance does not ensure the
economic success of technologies that may be based on it.

The recent past is littered with examples of adventurous goal-

directed programmes of research and development which have
failed for intrinsic reasons or which, alternatively, have been
technically successful, but unusable for economic or other reasons.
Yet over a period of time man is tempted to glimpse in the
possibility of those programmes to apply to the mankind and in
many cases the process became successful.

Basically the technology is a pull for the demand human base. The
public gains much more than the economic value of technology. It
gains culture, comfort, convenience, security, recreation, health and
the extension of life. What monetary value can be put on the
triumphs of health over debilitating or fatal disease? Those values
are to be considered higher than the purely economic savings. In
short technology is characterized by the quest for the answers.

Check Your Progress

1. Fill in the gaps :

a) Technology is associated with manufacturing
b) Technology significantly affects _______ & ______ Species.
c) Human society theoretically bifurcated into ______ & _____ base
d) Advance in technology is accompanied by ______ & _____
Changes.
e) Basically technology is a pull for ______

2. How Technology can affect society?

 
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4.3 MAN ENVIRONMENT RELATIONSHIP

In the earlier sessions we have seen that the environment is an

integrated system of all living and nonliving aspect around us. It has
shaped the evolution of mankind. As the environment changed,
man did as well. By the rise of Homo erectus (our previous
species), mankind began to forever shape their environment, over
three and a half million years ago. During many of the ice age
periods, the environment directly affected the livelihood and future
of humans which resulted in mankind altering the environment
through technology. Although at times the environment and
mankind were linked much more closely. There was not simply an
environmental change that resulted in a change in man.

Technology is what has set mankind out from every other animal on
the planet. Our ability to create new tools has allowed us to grow
and evolve as a species. From simple stone tools for cutting to the
immense benefit of fire, man has been able to develop and use
technology to rise up on the food chain. The invention of fire has
altered the world with the intense impacts. It allowed the mankind to
prosper and grow in previously uninhabited areas. Population has
spread occupying new areas, new foods, new animal associates.

And today the picture is altogether different .The actual number of

humans that live on this earth is the problem rather than how we
live on the earth. We should develop new processes of growing,
disposing, etc, to overcome our viral tendencies. Overpopulation is
becoming one of the most preeminent problems facing human
civilization. This complicated, pervasive issue is a problem of the
utmost importance for people of all races, religions, and
nationalities. The key to the survival of mankind lies in its ability to
alter their environment. It is most likely that we would not have
survived as a species if we were not able to shape it to our will.
Although in changing the environment we have started a chain of
events that may lead to future difficulties. The world can only be
altered for so long before it reaches its threshold and can no longer
accommodate anymore. We are drastically moving towards that
threshold without any care to what may happen. Today, our planet
provides for approximately 6.5 billion people, with projections of
around 10 billion by the year 2050. Two billion of these are
extremely poor, the poorest of which live in absolute poverty and
misery.

Increasing amounts of food, energy, water, and shelter are required

to fulfil the needs of human society. Much of our energy is derived
from the burning of fossil fuels releasing millions of tons of toxins
into the atmosphere. The amount of land required for food
production will grow increasingly larger, while the amount of

 
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available land will grow increasingly smaller.

The affects of overpopulation on human society are numerous.

Suffering from a lack of resources, people are often driven to war
when they become too populated for their available resources.
Ethnic and racial differences will grow increasingly frequent and
irresolvable. Increasing numbers in urban areas will lower quality of
life in cities around the world.

The complications of this complex issue are unlimited. Factors such

as poverty, food distribution, and government corruption are all
important aspects. No one will be unaffected by the repercussions
of an overpopulated world, unless we stop the destruction and
corruption now. With our endless need of new information, we
should be able to develop unique process to end these problems. I
strongly believe that the actual number of humans populating the
earth is the problem rather than how humans live on this earth.

Check Your Progress :

1. Which change are found in man with change in environment?

2. Which ability of man has helped him to separate him from
other animals?
3. How man grew by altering the environment?
4. How over population will affect human society?

4.4 MAN AND THE DISCOURSE OF TECHNOLOGY

DEVELOPMENT

Technology is a term with origins in the Greek word ‘technologia’.

Technology is often a consequence of science and engineering. It
was widely considered that technology is simply "applicability of
science’ or the ‘knowledge of the skilful and practical’. Every
technology starts from a human purpose, from the intention to
satisfy some human need or behaviour. Indeed, technology is the
manipulation of nature for human purpose. Thus as the purpose
changes over time we try to find out new way to fulfil our purpose in
a more cost-effective manner.

However, we must understand that manipulation of nature will alter

the whole structure in a different manner. If we say that technology
as the knowledge of the manipulation of nature for human
purposes, all practical or technical skills ultimately derive from
alterations or manipulation of nature. So, technology manipulates
nature for human purposes. Technology manipulates nature. Man is
a part of nature. By manipulating nature, man manipulates himself.
Thus, technology manipulates man, influences, even regulate
human behaviour, and in turn compose societal behaviour,
traditions and culture. Technology is an entity that intervenes in the

 
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life of human beings in multifaceted ways, directly or indirectly,

trying to alter not only his lifestyle but his own race too.

This definition retains the notions of both knowledge and practicality

(human purposes) but adds the new concept of manipulation of
nature. This implies that all practical or technical skills ultimately
derive from alterations or manipulation of nature. Technology
depends on a base in the natural world (Science) but extends the
natural world through the phenomenon of manipulation
(Engineering). Since we want to manipulate nature, the ability to
predict what nature will do when manipulated is most useful, indeed
imperative. This is very importance specifically when we try to
define the structure of man in the frame of nature through his
activities and interactions with nature.

Technology is a double edged sword. It intensely matters who is

using it and for what purpose. The usage of technology starts from
the human history about cave. Hunting tools made by stone might
be the first technology. After that we got fire also from stone. Other
technological advances was clothing and sheltering from wood and
leafs. The improvement from those technologies was metal tools for
hunting animal.

To modernize our daily life, science was deployed in a hard manner

from the beginning. Meanwhile, humans were learning to harness
other forms of energy. The earliest known use of wind power is the
sailboat. The invention of the wheel revolutionized activities as
disparate as transportation, war, and the production of pottery.
Industrial revolution in England was the important mile-stone in
technology. From them that technology spread to the whole world.
And life became easier than before.

Steam engine was the first stage technology. By this engine we got
some speedy transport system. It saved our time in industry also.
Limited price, limited labour and limited production were the status
of first stage technology.

From the invention of electricity we entered into the second stage of

technology. The huge usage of electricity made a new lighted
world. Western countries were spreading such kind of technology to
the whole world. By this time people could understand that to
development of their countries technology is must. Without it
improvement is impossible. Electric technology gives us fastest life.
Without electricity modern life is unimaginable.

The third stage of technology was the era of understanding and

deploying atom; electron, proton. Technology gives us new
knowledge of the element of earth, and by those element scientist
tried to make something special, and the result is submarine.

 
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21st century is the modern age of life. And we use technology

anytime, anywhere, every steps of life. This has observed the
culmination of different facets of science like atom, electricity
telecommunication which has resulted into the widely known field of
information technology; the whole world is relying on.
Not in the field of material but in the field of life-sciences too we
have understood the minute parts of our body, its processes and
also the process of generation of life, which we try to alter today
under the name of biotechnology.

Check Your Progress

1. What is the meaning of the term technology?
2. How technology affects mankind?

4.5 EFFECTS OF TECHNOLOGY TO MANKIND

There is no escape from technology. In most cases this is not a
problem though. Many people respect and admire technology
because it is there to benefit them. Without the technological
advances we have had over the years, the world would not be what
it is today. What people don’t understand that technology can
actually be a bad thing! In society today, people are looking for
more and more ways to be entertained, and all it is doing is causing
problems. People are doing less and less thinking and more and
more watching, listening, and playing, all because of technology.

Forms of entertainment like the Internet, television and even video

games seem harmless to people, but they are really not. When the
Internet was first introduced, people never thought it would be as
big as it is today. The Internet is an easy to use technology that can
do just about anything. But what people don’t understand is that the
Internet is not all good.

Although the Internet is a relatively new technology, television has

been around for about fifty years. There are many problems with
television though, mainly with the content of the shows. Many of the
shows on television portray violence, drugs, sexual activity, and
profanity. People who watch these shows see what the actors and
actresses are doing and then feel it is all right for them to do the
same things. If a kid is watching a show were one of the actors or
actresses use profanity, they will feel it is all right for them to use
the same language.

Much of the information posted on sites on the Internet is merely

opinions, not factual information. When people look at this
information, it looks and seems like trustful information, but most of
the time, it is not. People considered as those as factual and
considered those as an assumptions for their decision making.
Thus decisions made on false assumption go wrong leading to
psychological disturbance and mental stress. This suggests that if

 
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technology is not properly understood and misused leads to

troubles in life. If few do this perhaps other will control it but when a
major chunk of society will do it is beyond control.

When television first came on the market about fifty years ago,
families had one television at the most in the household, and most
families only used the television for the news or for an occasional
show or two. Today, it is a rarity if you find only one television in a
household. Most families have numerous televisions in their house
and use it more and more for entertainment purposes. People of all
ages are addicted to television.

On average, people watch about thirty hours of television a week.

But the people who go beyond this mark are known to society as
‘sofa set potatoes’; These are the people who sit in front of the
television for hours on end, and will only get out of their seat to get
something to eat, drink or to go to the bathroom. Social gatherings
and even family communication is affected by the amount of
television people are watching. At the beginning, people didn’t know
what they were going to do with a television, but now the question
is how people could survive without a television. What is true about
television at this span of time it is equally true in case of internet.
Under the discourse of surfing people are motionless for hours
having slow but steady impact on their health. In the recent period,
scientists have warned about the exposure to radio waves through
mobile phone. In short, technology is proved a curse due to our
mishandling.

The Internet and Television are probably the two biggest

technologies that are affecting people today. Video games though
are another technology that is affecting the individual, mainly
teenagers and kids. Much like television, video game problems
come with the content of the game. Many of the video games on
the market today are structured toward violence. The objective of
these games is to either beat your opponent up or kill your
opponent. What might be the development of mindset on the Kids
play these games, and much like television, see what the game is
portraying and feel it is all right to do the same things.

Whether it is the Internet, television, or even video games,

technological advancements have their advantages and
disadvantages. People never think that something that is said to be
so good can actually have a bad side to it. People get too caught up
in things sometimes that they forget what it is there for. People
have to learn to use technology the right way so they can get the
best out of it without overusing

 
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Check Your progress

1. How technology can affect mankind?

2. How the internet facility can cause threat to mankind?

4.6 POPULATION IN THE WORLD IN THE

HISTORICAL PERIOD

The world's population grew very slowly until about 1750. There
was a long period of stationary growth or no growth until 1000 B.C.,
when the world's population was approximately 300 million; this
was followed by a period of slow growth from 1000 B.C. to
approximately 1750, at which time global population was an
estimated 800 million. Till this time, the world's population was kept
in check by high death rates, which were due to the combined
effects of plagues, famines, unsanitary living conditions, and
general poverty as well as the local warfare. After 1750, the world's
population grew substantially; by 1950 it had tripled to around 2.5
billion. In this 200-year period, the doubling time was 122 years.
Growth from 1950 to 1985 was even more dramatic; by 1985, the
human population was 5 billion. World population had doubled in
thirty-five years. By 2000 global population was 6 billion and is
projected to be 9 billion in 2050.

Population growth did not become exponential until around 1750.

Before that, high mortality counterbalanced the high fertility needed
by agrarian parents. Death rates were very high and life expectancy
was low; life expectancy at birth was in the range of around thirty
years until the middle of the eighteenth century. This high mortality
was a function of several factors, including poor nutrition, which led
directly to deaths through starvation and indirectly through
increasing susceptibility to disease; epidemics; and, quite possibly
due to warfare. Not only in India but in the remaining world also the

 
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search for new land and the expansion of the old empires led to
counter-balancing the increased population due to early marriage
and polygamy.

Starting in the middle of the eighteenth century, the mortality rate

began to decline in the West, the first place in the world where the
natural balance between births and deaths was altered by humans.
This decline in deaths occurred not because of major medical
breakthroughs (e.g., penicillin was first used only in the 1940s) but
rather because of improvements in food availability, housing, water
cleanliness, personal hygiene, and public sanitation. Later, in the
twentieth century, medical advances, particularly vaccinations
against infectious diseases, accelerated mortality decline.

One complicating question always arise is the pattern of population

growth. Did it rise to some level and then fluctuate wildly in
response to famines and changes in climate? Or did it grow at a
constant rate from one point to another? We cannot know the
answers to these questions. The date of humanity's arrival on the
planet is before 50,000 B.C. Since then variety of factors,
processes which have resulted in to such fluctuating patterns.
Although palaeontologists have produced a variety of theories for
the purposes of this exercise, it was assumed that a constant
growth rate applied to each period up to modern times. Birth rates
were set at 80 per 1,000 per year through 1 A.D. and at 60 per
1,000 from 2 A.D. to 1750. Rates then declined to the low 30s by
the modern period.

This semi-scientific approach yields an estimate of about 106 billion

births since the dawn of the human race. Clearly, the period 8000
B.C. to 1 A.D. is a key to the magnitude of our number, but,
unfortunately, little is known about that era.

So the estimate here is that about 5.8 percent of all people ever
born are alive today. That's actually a fairly large percentage when
you think about it. In that period the land and the aspects of nature
were fairly available but today the quantity as well as quality of the
aspects of nature which are and will be responsible for our survival
are poor leading to scarcity of the availability.

 
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Check Your Progress

1. Match the Column.

A (Phases of population growth) B (Period)

1. Stationary Phase 1) Till 2050

2. Slow growth rate 2) Until 1000 B.C.
3. Substantial growth 3) 1950-1985
4. Dramatic growth 4) 1750-1950
5. Expected fast growth 5) Upto 1750

2. Fill in the gaps.

a) Population up to 1000 B.C. was ______________ Million.

b) Estimated Population 1750 was ______________ Million.
c) Increase in population after 1750 ______________ Billion.
d) By 1985 population of world was ______________ Billion.

4.7 WHY DID POPULATION GROW?

There were many effects that caused the population growth. It has
resulted into improvements in agriculture, hygiene, medical care,
people’s health, the industrial revolution and young marriage.
These changes in industry, medicine and social lives were the
causes of the fall in death rate and the rise in the birth rate and
these two factors along with migration trend brings up the
population of a country.

In tropical countries due to warmer weather and improvements in

machinery as a result of assistance from developed countries like
seed supply, fertilisers and cross breeding of animals; farmers
produced more food for people. This was the agricultural revolution.
This then reduced the risk of starvation and to some extent
malnutrition. By improving people’s diet the death rate was
reduced, helping the population to grow. In country like India
medical assistance has assured not only decline in infant mortality
but the reproduction period was also increased; resulting into more
children per mother; therefore increasing the birth rate of the
country. The vaccination process has reduced the risk of epidemies
like small pox, plague, malaria and other likely diseases.

 
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4.8 POPULATION GROWTH IN THE WORLD

We need to understand what is meant by population growth as it is

highlighted everywhere in the world as a major problem to the
development of the mankind.

Population growth suggests the change in the size of a population.

This may be positive as well as negative. In case of positive change
actual population increases while in negative change population
declines over time.

Population growth is measured in both absolute and relative terms.

Absolute growth is the difference in numbers between a populations
over time; for example, in 1950 the world's population was 4 billion,
and in 2000 it was 6 billion, a growth of 2 billion. Relative growth is
usually expressed as a rate or a percentage; for example, in 2000
the rate of global population growth was 1.4 percent (or 14 per
1,000). For every 1,000 people in the world, 14 more are being
added per year.

Populations can grow at an exponential rate, just as compound

interest accumulates in a bank account. One way to assess the
growth potential of a population is to calculate it’s doubling time i.e.
the number of years it will take for a population to double in size,
assuming the current rate of population growth remains unchanged.
This is done by applying the "Rule of Seventy"; that is, seventy
divided by the current population growth rate (in percent per year).
The 1.4 percent global population growth rate in 2000 translates
into a doubling time (if the growth rate remains constant) of fifty-one
years.

This helps in understanding in a simple manner that smaller the

doubling time, rapid is the population growth.

Check Your Progress

1. “Positive & negative population growth affects economic
growth” Explain.

 
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4.9 FACTORS INFLUENCING ON POPULATION

GROWTH & DISTRIBUTION
Human population has increased dramatically over the last few
centuries. In 1830, more than 900 million people inhabited Earth.
As we are entered in twenty-first century, Earth’s population is
nearly crossed six and half billion. At the same time, extraordinarily
large and dense clusters of people are growing. The
geographically informed person must understand that the growth,
distribution, and movements of people on Earth’s surface are the
driving forces behind not only human events—social, cultural,
political, and economic—but also certain physical events—large-
scale flooding, resource depletion, and ecological breakdown.
Students need to develop an understanding of the interaction of the
human and environmental factors that help to explain the
characteristics of human populations, as well as their distribution
and movements. The distribution and density of Earth’s population
reflect the planet’s topography, soils, vegetation, and climate types
(ecosystems); available resources; and level of economic
development. Population growth rates are influenced by such
factors as education (especially of women), religion, and
telecommunications, urbanization, and employment opportunities.
Mortality rates are influenced by the availability of medical services,
food, shelter, health services, and the overall age and sex
distribution of the population.
Another key population characteristic is growth, which may be
described in terms of fertility and mortality, crude birth- and death
rates, natural increase and doubling time, and population structure
(age and sex distribution). These basic demographic concepts help
bring focus to the human factors that explain population
distributions and densities, growth patterns, and population
projections. Population pyramids, for example, indicate the
differential effects of past events, such as wars, disease, famine,
improved sanitation, and vaccination programs, on birth- and death
rates and gender. For example, a large proportion zero to 15 years
old suggests rapid population growth whereas a large proportion 45
to 60 years old suggests a mature population, which will soon
require significant resources to support the elderly specifically
medical aid. Both predictions could have significant geographic
implications for a community; for example, a young population
could create a need for more housing and schools, whereas an
older population could create a need for more retirement and
medical facilities. Such demographic analyses can be performed at
all scales.
Almost every country is experiencing increased urbanization.
Across Earth peasant and pastoral life is giving way to the more

 
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economically promising lure of life in cities, as people seeking

better jobs or more income move to areas where opportunities are
better. The majority of the world’s people are moving toward a way
of life that only a minority of people experienced less than a century
ago. Population geographers predict that Tokyo, Sao Paulo,
Mumbai, Shanghai, Lagos, and Mexico City will be the next
century’s most massive population centres. However, people in
some developed countries are giving up the economic advantages
of city life for the ease and attractions of suburbs and small towns,
especially those with access to employment in metropolitan areas.
The distribution and density of infrastructure is also responsible for
such pattern. Even in India population density in cities suggests this
factor. People from all over India are moving towards Mumbai
crossing its physical limits to bear those.
Migration is one of the most distinctive and visible characteristics of
human populations and it leads to significant moulding of population
distribution and character. It is a dynamic process that is constantly
changing Earth’s physical & cultural landscapes. It takes place at a
variety of scales and in different contexts. At international scale the
flows of immigrants and emigrants depicts this. At national scales
inter-state flow or the flows from rural to urban areas, which is also
a principal cause of urbanisation. Even at a local scale consider the
continuous mobility of college students, retirees, and tourists or the
changes of address influencing on transit patterns.

Here three types of migrations are to be considered. 1. Voluntary

and discretionary i.e. the search for a better place to live, 2.
Voluntary but unavoidable i.e. the search for a place to live,
3.Involuntary and unavoidable i.e. the denial of the right to choose a
place to live.
In case of first two it indicates a comparative sound conditions and
only a pull factor towards a better living expectations while in the
last one severe political factor or the unrecoverable environmental
loss is indicated.
Thus we can come to the conclusion that population growth is
generally determined by
The size or numbers of the population.
The density and distribution of the population.
The growth during recent times.
The current rate Of growth and movements..
The age structure of the population.
The balance between males and females.
The standard and ratio of literacy.
While the distribution in the world is influenced by two main set of
factors comprising :-

 
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Socio environmental impact of increase in population

• Depletion of natural land as cities grow larger

• Drop in availability of natural resources
• Increase in poverty
• Unemployment
• Atmosphere hurt by burning fossil fuels
• Endangered animal species getting extinct
• Creating pressure on limited natural recourses
• Increase in illiteracy rate
• Food scarcity
• Chronic fresh water shortage
• Disappearing open space
• Crowded housing  
• Air pollution due to increase in traffic and
industries

Physical Features which include Availability of water, Topography &

slope, Fertility of soil, Climatic conditions, availability of vegetation
and hospitable conditions for domestic animals.

The Socio-cultural Factures include Agricultural development,

Available Power,

Access to Other Communities, Infrastructural development, Political

ideology, Stability of the government, availability and density of
communication infrastructure and social custums and beliefs.

Check Your Progress :

1. Name the factors causes population growth.

2. “Population growth changes with changes in physical setting”
comment.

4.10 LET US SUM UP

Human being is a very dynamic resource in the environment

population growth is causing threat to environment. The changes in
population growth is the outcome of increasing birth-rate &
decreasing death rate. But population is concerted in a few areas
which are favourable for human being to carry out his economic
activities smoothly. Hence population growth or even decline in
population has socio-economic implications. Which even leads to
uneconomical development and use of technology. But to present
technological development is creating problems to environment.

 
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4.11 UNIT END EXERCISE

1. Human presence is very significant & dynamic element in the
environment Discuss.
2. How the advancing communication medias affects human
being.
3. Explain the relationship between birth-rate & death rate in
population growth.
4. How population is distributed in the world? Which factors
influence on population growth.
5. Explain in detail the relationship between man & technology.

 
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5
CHALLENGES OF POPULATION
GROWTH, ENVIRONMENT AND HUMAN
HEALTH RELATION
Unit Structure :
5.0 Objective
5.1 Introduction
5.2 Population distribution in the world
5.3 What does carrying capacity mean?
5.4 HDI – the concept
5.5 Effect of Population on Environment
5.6 Impact of environment on human health
5.7 Patterns of human health & nutrition in India- case study
5.8 Let Us Sum Up
5.9 Unit End Exercise

5.0 OBJECTIVES
Hence in this chapter few objectives are framed as follows :

• Understand inequality in population distribution in world.

• Study the need for HDI development in India.
• To know about how increasing population creating threat to
environment quality.
• Understand the increasing human health problems due to
disturbance in environment.

5.1 INTRODUCTION
In the earlier chapter we have discussed about various aspects of
population change & the impacts of technology generated by
human being causing threat to our environment. But environment
has its own capacity to absorb the human impacts. The increasing
human impacts on environment are backfiring on human being
himself.

This is possible through understanding the human potencies as a

resource.

 
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5.2 POPULATION DISTRIBUTION IN THE WORLD

Global population is growing at a phenomenal rate – It took all of
human history until 1830 for world population to reach one billion.
The second billion was achieved in 100 years, the third billion in 30
years, the fourth billion in 15 years, and the fifth billion in only 12
years. Population is predicted to exceed 9 billion by 2050.

We’re made very aware of the threats of a changing climate, how

rising sea levels could force millions out of their homes, threaten
food security and increase conflict, but rising population can only
make all of these effects worse. Larger populations need more
land for crops, reducing forest cover, decreasing biodiversity and
ecosystem services and actually making climate change worse.
This we understand as a result of population more than required.
Overpopulation is also at the root of more immediate human
problems – poverty, HIV/AIDS, childhood illness, access to drinking
water and the effectiveness of vaccination programmes are all
made worse by being overpopulated. Although, world is
overpopulated in general, it is not area specific. As per the
estimates of 2009 world total population id 6.829 billion while the
share of developed countries is 1.233B, less developed countries is
5.596B and least developed countries is 0.835B. at this rate by
2050 population of the world will exceed 8.5 billion.

Most of the additional 2.3 billion people expected by 2050 will be

concentrated in developing countries, whose population is projected
to rise from 5.6 billion in 2009 to 7.9 billion in 2050. This increase
will be composed of a gain of 1.2 billion people aged 15-59 and 1.1
billion of persons aged 60 or over. The number of children under
age 15 in developing countries is actually expected to decrease
slightly. In contrast, the population of the more developed regions is
expected to change minimally, from 1.23 billion in 2009 to 1.28
billion in 2050, and would have declined to 1.15 billion were it not
for the projected net migration from developing to developed
countries, which is projected to average 2.4 million persons
annually from 2009 to 2050.

Currently, the population of the less developed regions is still

young, with children under age 15 accounting for 30 per cent of the
population and young persons aged 15 to 24 accounting for a
further 19 per cent. In fact, the number of children and young
people in the less developed regions are at an all time high (1.6
billion children and 1.0 billion young people), posing a major
challenge for their countries to provide education or employment to

 
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large cohorts of children and young people in the face of an

unfolding economic and financial crisis. The situation in the least
developed countries is even more pressing because children under
15 constitute 40 per cent of their population and young people
account for a further 20 per cent.

In the more developed regions, children and young people account

for just 17 per cent and 13 per cent of the population, respectively.
Whereas the number of children is expected to change little in the
future, remaining close to 200 million, the number of young people
is projected to decrease from 163 million currently to 134 million in
2050.

In both the more and the less developed regions, the number of
people in the main working ages, 25 to 59, is at an all time high:
603 million and 2.4 billion, respectively Yet, while in the more
developed regions this number is expected to peak over the next
decade and decline thereafter, reaching 528 millions in 2050, the
corresponding population in the less developed regions will
continue to rise, increasing by nearly half a billion over the following
decade and reaching 3.6 billion in 2050. These trends reinforce the
urgency to support employment creation in developing countries as
part of any strategy to address the global economic crisis that the
world is currently experiencing.

For this scenario there’s no quick fix for overpopulation, and it’s
certainly not something we can solve in a single day, but an
awareness of the problems and opportunities can help us, and our
governments, make the right decision. Investments in women’s
education, family planning, public health and other social services
can make a difference, and should not be allowed to suffer because
of the global financial crisis. Already, developing nations are feeling
the consequences of the financial crisis in the west –the credit
crunch has affected funding for HIV/AIDS programmes in
Africa; 90% of family planning in Uganda relies on overseas funding
and half of the funding for healthcare in Africa comes from funding
sources in America. A financial crisis in the west risks becoming a
humanitarian crisis in the developing world, this will surely generate
the long term impacts not only on population trends but the human
resource generation for very long term in those countries.
Fortunately in our country majority of the projects are self sustained
and the impact of crisis is very limited reveals a real good news.

Check Your Progress :

1. Which problems are increasing due to over population?

2. Explain the population growth in developing countries.
3. Examines the state of population in more & less developed
regions.

 
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5.3 WHAT DOES CARRYING CAPACITY MEAN?

Carrying capacity means how much the Earth can sustain in

terms of resource usage and population. It refers to the number of
individuals who can be supported in a given area within natural
resource limits, and without degrading the natural social, cultural
and economic environment for present and future generations. It's
the maximum number of consumer that can live in a finite space,
like the maximum number of deer that can live on an island.

Sometimes the term is used in a number that can be

supported in a square mile given a certain type of environment.

Just take an example. A buffalo normally needs 1/2 acre of land to

graze every year. If we have 100 acres and there are enough other
resources you can say the hundred acres has a carrying capacity of
200 buffalo. But if there is a drought the next year, there won't be as
much grass to eat so the same buffalo would need 1 acre to live on.
Then only 100 buffalo could live in the same area. The carrying
capacity for the area would go down. In a similar way the
availability of grass can be increased by adding fertilizer in the area.
However, by this way there cannot be 500 buffalo can graze. At the
most those will be 300. Thus every space is having the upper limit
to provide the opportunities to the consumer. This refers to carrying
capacity.

Thus, the carrying capacity for any given area is not fixed. It can be
altered by improved technology, but mostly it is changed for the
worse by pressures which accompany a population increase. As
the environment is degraded, carrying capacity actually shrinks,
leaving the environment no longer able to support even the number

 
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of people who could formerly have lived in the area on a

sustainable basis. No population can live beyond the environment's
carrying capacity for very long. Hence, we need to understand that
if we consume the nature more, less from us will survive. We need
to control our needs.

5.4 HDI – THE CONCEPT

In the development of any country, the role of population in

inevitable. Population play the role of consumer of the materials,
products generated and the services generated as well as the role
of creator of all above. In the sustainability of any economy the
capabilities of population are not only to be surveyed and deliberate

The Human Development Index (HDI) - is a summary composite index that

measures a country's average achievements in three basic aspects of human
development: longevity, knowledge, and a decent standard of living. Longevity is
measured by life expectancy at birth; knowledge is measured by a combination of
the adult literacy rate and the combined primary, secondary, and tertiary gross
enrolment ratio; and standard of living by GDP per capita.

but also to be planned in the expected manner for the goals of the
region in the medium and long-run. And hence, this need was
realize in the decade of 1990s which was solved by a process of
single number index. Only a single number would shift the attention
of policy-makers from concentration on economic to human well-
being. This was devised and launched by Pakistani Economist
Mahbub ul Haq in 1990. Haq was sure that a simple composite
measure of human development was needed in order to convince
the public, academics, and policy-makers that they can and should
evaluate development not only by economic advances but also
improvements in human well-being.

The HDI combines three dimensions:

• Life expectancy at birth, as an index of population health and
longevity
• Knowledge and education, as measured by the adult literacy
rate (with two-thirds weighting) and the combined primary,
secondary, and tertiary gross enrolment ratio (with one-third
weighting).
• Standard of living, as measured by the natural logarithm of
gross domestic product per capita at purchasing power
parity.

The Human Development Index has been criticised on a number of

grounds, including failure to include any ecological considerations,
focusing exclusively on national performance and ranking, and not

 
  90

paying much attention to development from a global perspective.

Know your population world

• Two-thirds of Earth's population lives within the mid latitudes, and almost 90
percent of the world's population lives north of the equator.
• Around 90 percent of the world's population is concentrated on only 20
percent of the land surface. Therefore, a large majority of Earth's inhabitants
live on and occupy a small portion of Earth's total habitable land area.
• Three major population centers around the world include: East Asia (China,
the Koreas, and Japan); South Asia (India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh); and
Europe (Western, Eastern, and Southern Europe). In fact, two countries each
contain over one billion people: China and India. Since Earth's population is
over six billion, this means that China and India each contain at least one-
sixth of the Earth's total human population. Each major world region
contained the following percentage of the Earth's total population in 1999:
Africa (12.8 %), Asia (60.8 %), Europe (12.2 %), Latin America and the
Caribbean (8.5 %), North America (5.1 %), Oceania (0.5 %).
• While low-lying areas are more preferable for the locations of settlements,
still a large portion of the Earth remains quite uninhabited. The sparsely
population regions include northern and western North America, northern and
central Asia, and interior South America, interior Africa, and the interior of
Australia
• Cities and urban regions have seen dramatic increases in population over the
last fifty years, with much growth continuing at present and into the future.
Currently the Earth's urban population is estimated to be around 3.5 billion
people.

Secondly, the human development reports have lost touch with

their original vision and the index fails to capture the essence of the
world to seek the actual picture. The index has also been criticized
as outmoded and measuring aspects of development that have
already been studied thoroughly world over. The index has further
been criticised for having an inappropriate treatment of income,
lacking year-to-year comparability, and assessing development
differently in different groups of countries.

5.4.1 HOW HDI INFLUENCE ON ECONOMY

Human development is very important in terms of living conditions

in any country. The society committed to improving the life of its
people must also be committed to full and equal rights for all
members of the country. The UN considers three factors to
calculate human development in a country. These factors cover
many aspects of a country, including social development in a
country. Income, education, and healthy living are considered to be
the most important factors in human development, which help to rid
populations of poverty, and support human rights. First, the
improvement of lives is directly related to human rights. According

 
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to the 2000 UN Human Development Report, a more developed

country with more rights today, as opposed to 1970, can expect a
newborn to live 10 more years, adult literacy cut in half, and infant
mortality rates cut by over 40%. The more freedom and rights a
person has, the more opportunity, and better chance for a good
standard of living he possesses.

The rights to food, health, education and privacy were fundamental

building blocks of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights.
Humans, then, can realize what they are capable of achieving.
Similarly, a less developed country with less freedom, demotivates
people and takes away opportunity from somebody to achieve their
best. Moreover, national security, criminal justice, and freedom of
speech are other factors in human and social development; without
these, again, one cannot achieve their full potential.

Second, the UN considers income as is a very important factor in

determining human development. Income determines some human
rights in a country, and general standards of living. People in
poverty are usually denied rights, which include civil, political,
economic, social, and cultural rights. Human rights are directly
related to human development. Discrimination against the poor is
generally ignoring or denying their freedom of expression. Labour
or communication rights, for example, may not be agreeable for the
poor, which could mean unacceptable terms. Thus, the poor will
become poorer, while the rich can thrive off of their cheap labour.
This creates a larger gap in income distribution in a country. The
larger the gap, the more unequal a country is. Without basic labour
rights or freedoms, citizens may not be able to access social or
economic rights. In addition to rights, a higher income generally
means higher standards of living. This includes clean water and
food, adequate shelter, good communications, and a method for
transportation. A less developed country lacks these, while a higher
developed country, with a higher human development index,
essentially contains all of these.

Second, education is another important factor in determining

human development. Education determines the future of a country.
Without good education, children cannot make the country progress
and advance when they grow up. This would be the reversal of
human development. Generally, the less educated people are, the
less likely they will be able to understand complicated job tasks.
This includes standard information literacy. Without knowing simple
or complicated work or technology, especially in today’s world, a
country will not progress. In addition, education can also be related
to population growth or a lack of resources. Poor education can
mean a country has a very high population growth rate. This is due
to a lack of resources and money. The poor usually tend to have
many children, especially in less developed countries. With a high
growth rate, the demographic transition will be harder to achieve. In

 
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addition, as the population increases with youth and a lack of

education, there will be more poverty with the same amount of
resources, if the government does not increase public expenditures
on education. It has been proven that an increase of education
creates a rise in a nation’s GDP. Third, healthy living or life
expectancy is another factor used by the UN to calculate the human
development index. This factor deals with living standards and
possibly surrounding environment. Generally, a country with more
human rights and national security will have citizens with higher life
expectancies. A country in national calamity, may it be natural like
draught, famine or human like war, or one with poor sanitation
conditions is likely to have lower life expectancy. Other factors of
life expectancy are diseases, and a lack of resources, including
food. This means that the country’s government is not protecting
them, or even helping to provide clean and healthy living conditions.
Protecting or providing the right to live a clean and healthy life is
essential. Without a long life expectancy, in addition, humans
cannot achieve many things. This is somewhat linked to the
education factor. Full education of a human takes quite a long time,
moreover, education is not a time bound process. Conventional
education may halt in short span of time but to keep a good pace
with techno-scientific advancement, any member of national
workforce, may it be physical labourer, management practitioner or
the engineering or medical professional is inevitable. If the
person’s life expectancy is not long after educational achievement,
there is not much he or she can achieve, especially with no
experience. In comparison to a country with much higher life
expectancy, the country will usually have a lower human
development index.

Thus, the UN chooses three very important indicators for human

development because they are the simplest way of calculating
social development in a country. The more social development, the
more human rights the country tends to have. In addition, equal
human rights help all humans to achieve anything to the best of
their abilities. This tends to lower the poverty rate and raise equality
within a country. The more equal a country is, the more developed,
as the human development index depicts.

5.4.2 HDI IN INDIA

After the process of rapid development in the world oriented to

computer revolution and communication expansion over the last
two decades economic growth has got a lot more attention among
policymakers, corporate, economists, and academics in India and
across the world. Since 1991, when India has accepted and
executed liberalization, privatization, and globalization policies,
GDP growth rate has become a key word. It has got
disproportionate amount of attention from policymakers and
economists. It has been used excessively to measure the success

 
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or failure of any policy. But after two decades it has become clearly
visible that GDP growth rate alone cannot measure the
development of a nation. The difference between growth and
development too has become clearer. The growth clearly indicate
the conversion of goal achievements into GDP or rise in income
level, the development is the indicator of the level of distribution of
the benefits in the political state almost equally among all, not only
in terms of mare money but its adaptation in terms of health, both
physical and mental, updating information and knowledge
pertaining to his field of action and the liberty and human rights he
or she observes in the state.

In spite of fast paced economic growth for last 10-20 years, a large
part of our population remains illiterate. A large part of our
population does not have the access to safe drinking water and
proper medical care. Highest number of malnourished children
belongs to our nation. Majority of our educated population still
possess the discriminative gender attitude, the rate of crime has
never shown a waning trend. These are some of the bitter realities
which GDP growth based measurement never reflects. All these
facts suggest the need of a more holistic approach to measure the
development and growth.

Human Development Index (HDI) is the best available choice to

measure the development. It measures the development on the
basis of income, education & knowledge, and life expectancy at
birth. It covers many aspects of development rather than just
income and hence offers better insight to the development. This
report proposes to use Human Development Index (HDI) for
measuring development.

In the HDI of 2007, India was ranked 128, now we are at 132. The
place of India in Human Development Index (HDI) is progressively
higher. Even if we considered eight major economies of South Asia
in the 2009 Human Development Report, show a dismal record with
all countries relegated to the third category of medium development
states with the global rankings falling in the second half of the
listings of 182 countries. Topping the ranking list of the South Asian
nations in 2007, the date for which comprehensive data was
available, was Maldives (95), followed by Sri Lanka (102), Bhutan
(132), India (134), Pakistan (141), Nepal (144), Bangladesh (146)
and Afghanistan (182).

The worst aspect of the India’s low HDI ranking was its dismal
record in even a core area like life expectancy. Life expectancy at
birth in India was only 63.4 years, which pushed it down in the last
but one category, just above Afghanistan where the life expectancy
was a dismal 43.6 years.

India’s record on life expectancy is made worse by the low rates of

 
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survival of young persons. The estimates show that the probability

of dying before the age of 40 is among the highest in India, with
15.5% of the cohort loosing their lives. This is almost three times
the level of mortality in Sri Lanka where only 5.5% of the population
fails to cross the 40-age mark.

Hence, we can conclude that government need to fill up this gap

and should try to bring a uniform rate of growth throughout the
country instead of concentration over and area, region or state. The
need is to bring more useful projects and programmes and to end
up the old once.

Check Your Progress

1. Why the need for Human Development Index is felt?
2. What are the dimensions of HDI?
3. Why HDI has been criticised

5.5 EFFECT OF POPULATION ON ENVIRONMENT

The population of the world is slowly increasing. As this happens,

we need to take great caution in making sure we don’t harm the
environment. If we don’t be careful then it could lead to disastrous
effects for us and nature.

As cities grow larger and larger the natural land around them is
being turned into homes and office buildings. We need to set up
more parks inside cities to allow for the large amount of
urbanization. These parks help to beautify the city while helping to
preserve our environment.

As we build these homes and cities we are using more and more
lumber and other natural resources for the buildings. We need to
limit how much quarrying is allowed in one area and they need to
be replanted instead of left bare. If you have ever seen the
aftermath of a quarry you would understand how it is a scar to the
earth.

When we use the trees in a rainforest or any forest we should

replant at least the same amount of trees that we took out of it.
Birds, squirrels, and other animals use these forests to survive and
gather food. Without this natural habitat they will slowly begin to die
off.

Also alternative power sources should be researched and used

more heavily. As we burn more and more fossil fuels we are hurting
the atmosphere and slowly losing those valuable resources.
Learning how to expand our uses of solar, wind, and hydro-electric
energy will greatly help save the environment.

 
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It may not seem like nature is being hurt any now. However, as time
goes on we will slowly begin to see a decline of animals and may
even see some species go extinct and if we don’t change the way
we live we may soon outgrow nature herself.

Check Your Progress

1. How cities can able to preserve their environment?
2. What problems are generated due to excessive quarrying
around cities?
3. What is the need for alternative power Sources?

5.6 IMPACT OF ENVIRONMENT ON HUMAN HEALTH

A clean and healthy environment is part and parcel of the wealth
and quality of life that we desire for ourselves now and for our
children in the future. People demand that the air they breathe, the
water they drink, and the food they eat is free of pollution and
contaminants; they want to live undisturbed by noise, and they want
to enjoy the beauty of the rural areas, unspoiled clean coastlines
and mountain areas. They also want a world which will not be
affected by the so called climatic change.

Healthy and balanced natural systems are essential for supporting

life on this planet. Society relies on nature to provide us with the
resources for our survival: air, water, food, fibers, medicines, and
building materials. Children need to grow up aware of the nature
around them. As human beings we have a responsibility to
preserve the actual value of nature both for ourselves and for future
generations.

In recent decades, there has been a growing realization that the

quality of our air, water, soil, and food affect the quality of our health
and of our lives. This ranges from increased allergies, respiratory
disease, and cancers to the disorder of the body’s hormone and
fertility systems, and premature death. In the recent years the
functional diseases are declined because of the active medical and
sanitation system while because of our lifestyle the structural

 
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Woman Education – An answer

Education of women is multi-faceted with connections affecting all areas of their

lives. The availability of birth control gives women the freedom to explore many
avenues including higher education and a professional life if they chose it. An
educated woman is empowered and might seek fulfillment in her life besides the
traditional role of wife and mother. These roles do not have to be devalued
because she wants more out of life. On the contrary, it can make her a better wife
and mother because she feels valued and productive.

Women in America have only been voting for a little over one hundred years, and
the climb into politics, the corporate world, civil institutions, and just about every
other area where women have been deprived of equal status and financial
opportunity have been challenged. I have to disagree with the idea that women
will never be given authority. And now is the time for young girls and women to
see they have choices, and they can be corporate CEOs, professors, politicians,
and even president.    

diseases are rapidly increasing. This is easily proved in terms of the

cases of diabetes, blood disorders, and variety of syndromes. The
causes of our various environment-health problems are numerous
and include pollution from transport, agricultural activities, industrial
processes, domestic waste matter and waste management. Not
only human bodies but other animals and birds are also affected by
human activities.

Socio environmental impact of increase in population

• Depletion of natural land as cities grow larger

• Drop in availability of natural resources
• Increase in poverty
• Unemployment
• Atmosphere hurt by burning fossil fuels
• Endangered animal species getting extinct
• Creating pressure on limited natural recourses
• Increase in illiteracy rate
• Food scarcity
• Chronic fresh water shortage
• Disappearing open space
• Crowded housing  
• Air pollution due to increase in traffic and industries 

Over years, different kinds of fertilizers and biocides & other

chemicals were used in agriculture to obtain the best crops. Soil,
much like every living creature needs vitamins, needs to replenish
its nutrients. These nutrients are found in healthy soil, and it helps
grow and protect the plants from insects, bugs, and weed killers.
These chemicals later reached to human bodies though system of
food-web. Human and other bodies have reacted to these

 
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unidentified chemicals and as a result the genetic change has

occurred. Animals are having distorted bodies, lead to different
Harmon system which again affect human body, e.g. mad cow
disease. The pesticides and herbicides used in agriculture are the
holders of the toxins that cause cancer. Studies in N. America
stated that some breast milk contains more than 200 toxins that are
known to cause cancer. Aerosols which we use widely in today’s
life is a collective name of firm or liquid particles, which contaminate
the air. Firm components of aerosols, in some cases, are especially
dangerous to living creatures, because they are linked to the cause
of specific diseases. In the atmosphere, aerosol pollution is
perceived as smoke, fog, haze or fumes. Plenty of dust particles
are also formed during the industrial activity of many businesses
and people.

Even if it is decided to grow foods without pesticides it may prove

very difficult because the cropping system may absorb the
pesticides from the soil, or be exposed to them while growing from
the air or even during packing and transportation.

Check Your Progress

1. Why the nature has to be preserved?

2. Which problems are generating due to decreasing environmental
quality?
3. “The problem of agricultural land is increasing.” Explain with
suitable examples.

5.7 PATTERNS OF HUMAN HEALTH & NUTRITION IN

INDIA- CASE STUDY

5.7.1 Tracking Health and Well-being in Goa's Mining Belt

New tools promote the sustainable development of mining

A strong mining sector can provide "good" jobs and generate much
needed revenue for cash-strapped governments. But it can also
ruin landscapes and transform communities. In the Indian state of

Population density of the continents

• North America - 32 people per square mile

• South America - 73 people per square mile
• Europe - 134 people per square mile
• Asia - 203 people per square mile
• Africa - 65 people per square mile
• Australia - 6.4 people per square mile

Goa, researchers supported by Canada's International

 
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Development Research Centre (IDRC) have developed a series of

tools to assess the trade-offs. The goal is to ensure that the mining
and mineral industry contributes equitably to the well-being of local
people.

The Indian state of Goa is better known for its beaches and as a
mecca for backpackers than as the backbone of India's iron ore
industry. Yet, the mining belt that stretches across the middle of this
tiny state accounts for 60 percent of the nation's iron ore exports.
The contrast between the picture-perfect beaches of the coast and
the pockmarked landscape of the interior is stark. Open pit mining
operations have left an indelible mark on the region: hills have been
flattened, forests razed, and fields blanketed in silt run-off from
waste sites and processing plants. Look beyond the fractured
landscape, however, and you will see that jobs have been created,
health and education standards have improved, and money spent
locally has brought a measure of material wealth.

Goa's story is one that has been repeated in mineral-rich regions

the world over where economic imperatives have pushed
environmental concerns aside. Where this story differs, though, is in
the steps being taken to change the narrative.

The search for balance

"Closing the mines because of their environmental impact is not an

option for Goa," says Dr Ligia Noronha of the Western Regional
Centre of the Tata Energy Research Institute (TERI). "But there is a
need to bring about some balance between the economic gains and
the environmental losses to ensure greater sustainability for the
region and local communities.

"Finding ways to achieve that balance is the driving force behind

the research in which TERI is now engaged. "Mining is one of those
activities that really connects issues relating to people,
development, and the environment," says Dr Noronha. "But its
contribution -- negative and positive -- to health and well-being is
poorly understood. More important, it's not well communicated."

As a result, local communities, governments, and mining

companies are often uncertain about their respective roles and
responsibilities in mining development, and they are unable to act
or participate effectively in decisions related to mining activities.
This is the information that Dr Noronha and the team she leads
have sought to provide. The team includes economists, a biologist,
a biochemist, an environmental geologist, a political scientist, and a
specialist in health and social research statistics. They have
developed a series of tools to measure the well-being of local
communities and the surrounding environment. "By allowing

 
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changes in well-being to be measured over time, these tools can

enable greater participation and conflict resolution. They can also
improve decision making," asserts Dr Noronha.

Building local trust

"Early on, we understood that we needed a broad perspective for

understanding well-being and its determinants, as well as a means
of addressing the various realities of the people living and working
in mining areas," says Dr Noronha. "We chose an ecosystem
approach because it places an equal emphasis on concerns related
to the environment, the economy, and the community in assessing
the significance of an economic activity to human well-being. For
us, it seemed the best way to go."
The TERI team also recognized that the active involvement of
mining companies, state and local governments, and villagers in
mining communities would be critical to arriving at workable
solutions. "The main challenge," says Dr Noronha," was convincing
the groups that we did not have vested interests -- that we were not
out to close mines, to do people out of jobs or governments out of
revenue, but to arrive at the shared understanding of the trade-offs
and possibilities. Fortunately, things worked well and we received
the full support of the local communities, industry, and the
government during this project."
To overcome early skepticism, the TERI team launched a process
they refer to as "multistakeholder issue development." Mining
company representatives, government officials, and community
members were involved in identifying and validating critical issues
associated with mining, with developing and testing tools, and in
resolving problems that arose as the project progressed. "The
multistakeholder process was a central feature of our work," says
Dr Noronha. "It ensured that the issues were acceptable to all the
stakeholders, that it reflected their priorities, and that the issues left
out were less important than those that were included."

Advantages of girl education 
1. Economic Productivity
2. Social Development
3. Social and economic understanding
4. Intergenerational Education
5. Sustainability of Developmental Efforts

The common set of core issues to emerge from this process

were:

• land: its availability for mining operations and issues of

compensation to farmers;

 
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• environmental quality: concerns about the degradation of air,

water, lands, and forests;
• post-mine closure: issues of unemployment, income
potential, migration rates, alcoholism, and environmental
cleanup;
• human and physical investment in the region: education,
basic amenities, rent-sharing with locals, training
opportunities, and health care facilities;
• social and community relations: nongovernmental
organizations' interference, political interference, media
under-reporting of problems, cosmetic attention to problems,
and consultation; and
• effective administration: rule enforcement, goals achieved,
and accountability.

Working from this core set of issues, the TERI researchers

developed three tools for measuring the impact of mining activities
and their effect on well-being: (1) a set of environmental and social
performance indicators to measure the economic, environmental,
and social costs of mining; (2) a "quality of life" instrument to assess
the well-being of people in mining areas over time; and (3) an
income-accounting tool to gauge the long-term economic viability of
mining activities.

5.7.2 Assessing change

The purpose of environmental and social performance indicators is

to measure trends. "Changes in indicators over time can then point
to what is happening in the mining region, whether impacts are
positive or negative, whether problems are growing or decreasing,
and whether or not current policies are achieving desired goals,"
says Dr Noronha. "They can also point out actions and areas of
concern to the main stakeholders."
The TERI team developed indicators for each of the stakeholder
groups. For mining companies, for example, whether wastewater
was treated and tailings water was recycled served as indicators of
environmental performance. In villages, water levels in wells and
rivers served as indicators of environmental quality. Because
monitoring was done by government agencies, they also served as
indicators of good environmental governance.

A pre-pilot test of the indicators was done with a few companies

and the Goa Mineral Exporters Association to see if the language
used was clear and to ensure that the indicators had policy
relevance. Where testing showed that data for proposed indicators
did not exist or would be difficult to obtain, those indicators were
dropped from the final set. Examples of indicators that were
dropped include the lowest wages paid by worker category, the
number of patents filed, and worker retraining expenditures as a
percentage of the total spent on all human resource development.

 
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Other indicators, not captured in the first round, were added:

concerns of workers, for example, were included because they
were seen as important to the mining companies, governments,
and the communities in which the workers lived. The revised list of
indicators was then field-tested and validated.

5.7.3 Monitoring quality of life

In developing the quality of life (QOL) instrument, the TERI team

worked with focus groups of 10 to 12 people who represented a
cross-section of the community and included members of the three
stakeholder groups. "The purpose of the focus groups," says Dr
Norohna, "was to get comments and views on conditions that make
life better or worse, and the conditions and processes that can
change the life of local people and make it more positive. They also
helped with the initial testing to ensure that the tool was valid and
comprehensive."

Versions of the QOL tool were piloted in Goa and in Mozambique to

check for consistency and validity of results. The tool was then
refined on the basis of feedback from field studies.
In Goa, the QOL instrument will provide stakeholders with a
snapshot of how quality of life changes over time and at different
levels of economic activity depending on whether mining is new to
the area, well established, or in the processof closing down. This
panoramic picture of changes over time can "suggest policies and
promote improved industry and government practices that will lead
to improved health and well-being of people," says Dr Noronha.

5.7.4 A mining ecosystem

The ecosystem defined by the TERI team includes 57 villages in

the Goa mining belt that the researchers grouped into four clusters.
The clusters cover a continuum in the life span of mining
communities from those where mining operations are new and very
active to more mature sites that are closing down. Environmental
and social characteristics are often correlated to where the clusters
lie along this continuum. Thus, literacy levels and access to
amenities, such as lighting, sanitation, water, and cooking gas,
were higher where mining was the most active. These same areas
also experienced the worst air quality as a result of dust from
mining and trucking operations. These differences were significant
for the research team. It meant that the tools they developed would
have to be sensitive enough to discern these differences and allow
for solutions tailored to the local reality.

 
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5.7.5 Promoting sustainable development

The role of mining in sustainable development is one issue that

decision makers and resource managers have wrestled with for
decades. With the development of their income-accounting tool, the
TERI researchers have attempted to show how mining activities,
which have a finite life span, can be integrated with social and
environmental concerns in a way that promotes long-term
community development.

The approach adopted by the TERI team places a monetary value

on the effects of mining, such as air and water pollution, loss of
forests, groundwater depletion, mineral resource use, and reduced
agricultural productivity. It also takes into account the direct and
indirect benefits to society. In the case of forests, for example, this
would include the economic benefits gained from the generation of
marketable products and the indirect benefits from watershed
protection and other services. These environmental costs can be
seen as an additional amount that should be contributed by the
mining company to finance environmental rehabilitation using the
"polluter pays" principle.

The team used similar accounting practices to place values on the

health and social costs of mining. To ensure the economic viability
of communities after the resource has been exhausted, money
would be set aside to finance human and community development.
This could help offset one of the main problems associated with
mine closures: the lack of skills and resources for alternate
economic development.

5.7.6 Promoting sustainable development

The role of mining in sustainable development is one issue that

decision makers and resource managers have wrestled with for
decades. With the development of their income-accounting tool, the
TERI researchers have attempted to show how mining activities,
which have a finite life span, can be integrated with social and
environmental concerns in a way that promotes long-term
community development.

The approach adopted by the TERI team places a monetary value

on the effects of mining, such as air and water pollution, loss of
forests, groundwater depletion, mineral resource use, and reduced
agricultural productivity. It also takes into account the direct and
indirect benefits to society. In the case of forests, for example, this
would include the economic benefits gained from the generation of

 
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marketable products and the indirect benefits from watershed

protection and other services. These environmental costs can be
seen as an additional amount that should be contributed by the
mining company to finance environmental rehabilitation using the
"polluter pays" principle.

The team used similar accounting practices to place values on the

health and social costs of mining. To ensure the economic viability
of communities after the resource has been exhausted, money
would be set aside to finance human and community development.
This could help offset one of the main problems associated with
mine closures: the lack of skills and resources for alternate
economic development.

5.7.7 Ecosystem Approaches to Human Health

Human health and well-being are intimately tied to the health of the
ecosystems that sustain life. Yet the potential for improving health
by better managing the local environment is an avenue rarely
explored in mainstream health programing. Through its Ecosystem
Approaches to Human Health (Ecohealth) Program Initiative, IDRC
aims to identify the web of economic, social, and environmental
factors that influence human health. Communities can then use this
knowledge to better manage ecosystems and improve the health of
both people and the ecosystem.

Check Your Progress :

1. Reflect some facts of population in the world.
2. Why girls or womens in the society has to be given education?

5.8 Let us sum up :

In the world it is seen that population is concentrated in the

favorable areas or regions, that is why 2/3 of world’s population
lives on just 7% of land surface. Even the pace of economic growth
differs among regions. The Human Development Index is effective
tool to measure the growth or development or development of any
country. In India the HDI is measure the growth pattern. There is
interdependence of both environment showing total different
pattern. There is interdependence of both environment &
population. The increasing population degrades the environment,
where as the degrading environment causing threat to mankind.
Now we have think is there any end to it?

 
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5.9 Unit End Exercise :

1. What is the meaning of the tern “Carrying Capacity” of

environment?
2. “HDI is considered as economic indicator of a country”
Discuss.
3. State the need for HDI Development in India.
4. Explain the relationship between increasing population &
degrading environment.

 
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6
FOOD PRODUCTION IN THE WORLD
Unit Structure

6.0 Introduction
6.1 Objectives
6.2 Food as a need & end
6.3 Food generating activities of man
6.4 Agriculture as an activity in the world
6.5 Perspective change in agriculture
6.6 Fishing as an activity in the world
6.7 Livestock rearing as an activity in the world
6.8 Let Us Sum Up
6.9 Unit End Exercises

6.0 OBJECTIVES

Thus, by studying this session you will be able to

• Understand the importance and availability of food in different

geographical areas of the world.
• Importance and means of food and nutrition to human life.
• Availability and management of alternative food in the world
• Importance of food security and food assurance in the world and
India.

6.1 INTRODUCTION

In the last sessions we have seen that population is one of the

major sphere of any economy and it influence not only the
economic sphere of man but the interaction of large quantity of
population with nature negatively influence the environment.

In this session we are going to study the process of survival of man

by way of food procurement processing search for new food
alternatives and in the failure of those the scarcity of food in the
world and India.

 
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6.2 FOOD AS A NEED & END

in the world, there are sharp differences in the body weight

patterns. In developed countries like USA, Canada or European
countries, people have better access to food and other factors of
nutrition; while in developing countries like india, Pakistan, china
and other African countries fulfillment of daily food itself is an
assignment. In country like USA, the rate of obesity and related
deaths are sky rocket high. Americans are more conscious
regarding their health, daily exercise, and nutritional habits.
Although a small number have begun to incorporate some sort of
diet and exercise into their daily schedule the majority still do not
see this as a priority and that leads to obesity; and there are
hundreds of pills and drugs for obesity. However they have their
own set of side-effects on human body. On the contrary, in the
country like India we have variety of materials used as food over a
long period of time.

Conventionally although food grains like rice, wheat jawar or beans

are consumed over a period of time human race has observed a
shortage of food and hence turned to some um-common material
as food e.g. soft drinks, .

Nutrition is essential to human health. Good quality and appropriate

quantity nutrition can put a stop to many health problems, including
becoming overweight, developing weak bones, and developing
diabetes. All the foods that have all the important nutrients will help
your body grow. Human body prospers on certain nutrients that
work together to promote growth and development. There is no
specific nutrient or group of nutrients that is more important to a
men’s health well-being.

Nutrition is one of the science that examines the relationship

between food and health. Dieticians are health professionals who
specialize in this area of study, and are trained to provide safe,
evidence-based dietary advice and interventions. Although these
are the new ideas in the present era taking into consideration of the
contemporary health problems Nutrition science which investigates
metabolic and physiological responses of the body to the food we
take is one of the need for today. Many common diseases and their
symptoms can often be prevented or alleviated with better nutrition.
The science of nutrition attempts to understand how and why
specific dietary aspects influence health. Nutrition is all about the
study of food and how our bodies use food as fuel for growth and
daily activities.

 
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Following are the major nutrients we intake through different variety

of food which sustain our body.

1. Calcium: the richest mineral in the body, that helps in the

development of bone growth.
2. Protein: is another important nutrient in health diet.
3. Fiber: is needed for body for good nutrition and healthy growth
4. Antioxidant nutrients: are vitamins C and E, beta-carotene, and
the mineral selenium Antioxidant nutrients are known to help
immune system.
5. Iron: is also very important to a child’s diet. Your body depends
on iron to get bigger and stronger. Iron also helps in brain
development and function

Our total daily calorie needs are the calories required to MAINTAIN
our weight. In order to LOSE weight, you need to reduce your
calorie intake. In order to GAIN weight you need to increase your
calorie intake. One pound of weight is equal to 3,500 calories.
Thus, in order to lose one pound of weight, per week, you should
either consume 3,500 fewer calories, or consume 1,500 fewer
calories while burning an extra 2,000 calories in extra exercise. To
gain one pound of weight, increase your calorie intake by 3,500
calories etc.

We also need to understand the function of food we eat. We need

food to live. We cannot live without food beyond a short period.
Food is therefore necessary for all living beings.
Food performs the following four functions

1. Growth: Food is essential for growth. Without food a living

organism will stop growing. The living cells in our body multiply
after getting nourishment from the food we eat. Insufficient or a
wrong type of food does not help healthy growth.
2. Repair: Living organisms sometimes damage their parts by
accident. Constant work also causes wear and tear of the body
parts. If we get a wound or cut, it heals up after some time. If we
damage our skin due to some burn etc., it regains its shape in
due course. The body needs food for all these functions.
3. Energy: We spend our energy when we do work. That is why
after doing considerable work, we get tired. We then need food
and rest to regain the lost energy. If we do not get food, we
would become weak.
4. Protection from Diseases: We need to protect our body from
diseases and keep it healthy. For this, we need vitamins and
mineral salts in our food. Vitamins neither provide energy nor do
they repair or replace the worn-out parts. But they are essential
for our proper health.

 
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Check your progress

1. Why is food needed for our body?
2. What are the functions of food?
3. What are the most required nutrients to our body?
4. How conventional food is different from today’s food?

6.3 FOOD GENERATING ACTIVITIES OF MAN

The collection or generation of food is the practice for last about

40000 years in the world. In the past that group of individuals we
know today as aboriginals; may have started with collection of
fruits, flowers, nut etc along with hunting. In the later period,
activities fishing and animal rearing joined the series. Clearing and
leveling of land for the cultivation purpose is a time segment not
more than about five thousand years before present. In that
discourse man cleared the forests for agricultural purposes and
altered vegetation patterns. The increased population and greater
needs of food-producing societies caused a more intensive
exploitation of the earth’s resources. After the transition to
agriculture, many new technologies were developed, and artifacts
were often made by processes that were new to all or had been
used only rarely in earlier times.

Conflict and warfare probably occurred within the early agricultural

societies as a result of the need of shifting cultivators to find
suitable land in the face of growing shortages and competition as
well as to keep population pressure down. The transition to
agriculture represents an important phase in the development of the
human population. Food production has resulted in many
advances, changes, and adaptations in the evolution of human
society. There are several thoughts that have been proposed to
explain the reasons for the origin of domestication.

Increasing population in the world has put a severe pressure on

mankind to search for alternative food. As a result, in the
contemporary time the urge for more land has intensified the
activity of survey and planning the land from natural land-cover to
certain land uses. The earlier areas of forest, stony waste, grass
lands are converted to day for cultivation or associated activities
like animal rearing, dairy processes. It is not about land but the
coastal water are also embanked to form artificial ponds for
aquaculture and mariculture. The geographical areas of grass
lands are converted to ranches for meat production as well as
generation of new breeds. Over a period of time agriculture has
achieved the status of industry in any countries and natural food is
replaced by ‘junk food’ and sometimes artificial food.

Thus the need of food has resulted into :

 
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1. Change in the land cover by man

2. Sedentation of human communities
3. Development of new methods to generate more food
4. Development of alternative food
5. Trade of food
6. Politics of food.

Check your progress

1. How has man started cultivation?
2. What are the new trends in cultivation because of technology?
3. How is food linked to world activities?

6.4 AGRICULTURE AS AN ACTIVITY IN THE WORLD

Science has brought about a revolution in every step of life. Life will
come to a standstill, if the fast moving means of transports and the
ear touching communicating gadgets are given away. Without
electricity our life will become extremely miserable. World will be
thrown into the grip of fatal epidemics. Indeed, the achievements of
science and technology are spread over all spheres of life.
Happiness, welfare and prosperity have become synonymous with
science.

Science has helped man to increase production in various ways.

Today industrially advanced countries in the world are commanding
the world in various manners. In our own country, there are a large
number of leading industries. Textiles industry, paper industry,
sugar industry, fertilizer industry are only a few such important
industries; majority of those are dependent on raw material comes
from rural areas.

Rapid industrialization has become the slogan of the day to fulfil

the needs of the rapidly growing population of the world. That is
why the late Prime Minister Nehru always emphasized the need of
promoting science and technology; followed by the slogan of ‘Jai
Jawan Jai Kisan by the Prime Minister Shastri. Without
development of science, the agro-industrial progress and increased
production can never be possible. Man would not have been so
well-dressed in the absence of textile industry; he would not have
been recovered fast in case of ailment without the fast nutrition
supplement. Today we have cloth enough not only to meet our
demand but also to spare for other countries. Similarly the supply of
food to other political areas possible when there is a surplus in
production. Division labour and specialisation has been carried to
its perfection and assurance. Not only has the production of goods
with the help of machines been made possible, but also their
distribution has been made world-wide. Today, we have world
markets to producer as well as to consume.

 
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Agriculture is the area that supports the above reality. The material
need to produce sugar, milk powder, fruit jam basically comes from
agriculture. When we estimate the capacity of land to produce with
the help of technology and soil sciences, we may take the decision
to produce not only for our requirement by also to feed others i.e.
for trade.

Agriculture is also very much indebted to science. Ever increasing

demand for food, due to the rapidly growing population, could not
have been met in the absence of science. Extensive and intensive
agriculture has been made possible with its help. Improved means
of irrigation, new machines like tractors, chemical fertilizer, disease
assistant varieties of seeds, are some of its contributions to
agriculture. Deserts have been converted into greeneries of the
world. In other important branches of agriculture also e.g., stories of
produce and its marketing, science is not found lacking. Big plants
have been erected, where farm produce can be stored in a
scientific way without any damage to a single grain. Perishable
agriculture products are taken to markets in such a short time that
they reach quite fresh.

In spite of all this contribution of science to agriculture, critics of its

use are not expected. However, people argue that land will become
useless and unproductive with the increased use of chemical
fertilizers; excessive use of water may result into water-logged
farmlands which is really speaking the fact. Yet for that the blame
does not go to the nature but to our irrational decisions without
understanding the system of nature and hurry in getting our needs
fulfilled of growing population. If we change that we need to
approve of mechanized farming i.e. the use of tractors and other
machines in agriculture. That will not upset the rural economy.
Bullock carts, which is a need in India is thrown out of use in
developed countries. Farmers have become indifferent to cows. In
short, rural life need to be clubbed with science in a rational manner
to get better fruits and not to just emotionally involved.

If we compare the advantages and disadvantages of science in

agriculture and industry, we will arrive at the conclusion that our
existence itself will be in peril, if we exclude the services of science
from these spheres. Indeed, if today is better fed and dressed it is
entirely due to the use of science in industry and agriculture.
The development and type of agriculture is dependent on the type
of environmental factors available.
Thus, following are the major types of cultivations in the world.
a. shifting cultivation
b. sedentary cultivation
c. subsistence cultivation
d. plantation farming
e. intensive farming
f. extensive commercial cultivation

 
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g. dry farming

In recent times man has clubbed certain other activities like animal
rearing, bee-keeping, poultry with agriculture to improve the yield
and increase the economic return. And hence new types of
cultivation are developed like
a) Silvi-flori-culture
b) Flori-apiculture
c) Horti-floriculture
d) Poultry-floriculture etc.

Check your progress

1. What are the factors determine type of agriculture?
2. What is the impact odd science on agricultural development?
3. Understand the new trend in the practice of agriculture ?
4..why are other activities clubbed with the practice of agriculture ?

6.5 PERSPECTIVE CHANGE IN AGRICULTURE

Being the activity responsible for absorbing about 65% of the
manpower in the country and having about 35% GDP in the
economy it is necessary to perceive the sound track of agriculture
for the future. This can be coupled with certain areas of the
economy. Those are as below

Human health and nutrition

Inter-linkages between health, nutrition, agriculture is very intense.
It affects the ability of individuals, communities, and nations to
reach sustainability goals. These inter-linkages exist within the
context of multiple determinants that affect population health and
the food security, the quality and quantity of nutrients people take
not only after birth but even in pre-natal state.

Decrease the incidence and prevalence of a range of infectious

diseases such as malaria, avian influenza, HIV/AIDS and others,
and chronic diseases, and decrease occupational exposures,
injuries and deaths.

Robust agricultural, public health, and Veterinary health result into

more cost-effectivity in case of economy stable food prices and
hence sound social condition putting limited stress on law and
order. Surveillance, monitoring, and response systems can help
identify the true burden of ill health and possible risks not only in
food system of today but the potency of economy of tomorrow.

Climate change
Climate change, which is taking place at a time of increasing
demand for food, feed, fiber and fuel, has the potential to

 
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irreversibly damage the natural resource base on which agriculture

depends.

The relationship between climate change and agriculture is a two-

way street; agriculture contributes to climate change in several
major ways and climate change in general adversely affects
agriculture.

In temperate regions moderate local increases in temperature can

have small beneficial impacts on crop yields; but in tropical; areas,
such moderate temperature increases are likely to have negative
yield effects. Some negative

Impacts are already visible in many parts of the world; additional

warming will have increasingly negative impacts in all regions.
Water scarcity and the timing of water availability will increasingly
constrain production. Climate change will require a new look at
water storage to cope with the impacts of more and extreme
precipitation, higher intra and inter-seasonal variations, and
increased rates of evapo-transpiration in all types of ecosystems.

Extreme climatic events like floods and droughts are increasing and
expected to amplify in frequency and severity and there are likely to
be significant consequences in all regions for food and forestry
production and food insecurity. There is a serious potential for
future conflicts over habitable land and natural resources such as
freshwater.

Climate change is affecting the distribution of plants, invasive

species, pests and disease vectors and the geographic range and
incidence of many human, animal and plant diseases is likely to
increase. That will severely influence on the future agriculture.

So as to avoid the negative impacts of the application of technology

along with geometrically increasing dement for food requires certain
set of policies to inculcate. These include change in land use
approaches such as lower rates of agricultural expansion into
natural habitats; afforestation, deforestation, increased efforts to
avoid deforestation, agro-forestry, agro-ecological systems, and
restoration of underutilized or degraded lands and rangelands and
land use options such as carbon sequestration in agricultural soils,
reduction and more efficient use of nitrogenous inputs; effective
manure management and use of feed that increases livestock
digestive efficiency.

Equity
For the greater equity, investments are required for the
development of context-specific technologies, and expanded
access of farmers and other rural people to occupational, non-
formal and formal education. An environment in which formal

 
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science and technology and local and traditional knowledge are

seen as part of an integrated system can increase equitable access
to technologies for a broad range of producers and natural resource
managers. Incentives in science, universities and research
organizations are needed to foster different kinds of partnerships
between and among different stake-holders.

For the development of agriculture requires equitable access to and

use of natural resources like particularly land and water, systems of
incentives and rewards for multi-functionality, and ecosystem
services, and responding to the vulnerability of farming and farm
worker communities. Reform at the government level include proper
governance of public organization because they play crucial role in
improving community-level scientific literacy, decentralization of
technological opportunities, and the integration of farmer concerns
in research priority setting and the design of farmer services.
Improving equity requires synergy among various development
actors, including farmers, rural laborers, banks, civil society
organizations, commercial companies, and public agencies.
Stakeholder involvement is also crucial in decisions about
international property rights, infrastructure, tariffs, and the
internalization of social and environmental costs.

Investment
The sustainability and development in agriculture is dependent on
availability of investment in the agriculture. Research in new
varieties, development of infrastructure in irrigation, fertilizer
development, and transportation requires money on large scale. In
our country NABARD was developed in 1984 to fulfill these needs.
Public-private partnerships for improved commercialization of
applied knowledge and technologies will boost the market
opportunities. This will provide the activity a status of industry. In
many developing countries, it may be necessary to complement
these investments with increased and more targeted investments in
rural infrastructure, education and health.

Bio-energy
Rising costs of fossil fuels, energy security concerns, and increased
awareness of climate change and potentially positive effects for
economic development have led to considerable public attention to
bio-energy. Bio-energy includes traditional Bio-energy, biomass to
produce electricity, light and heat and first and next generation
liquid bio-fuels. The economics and the positive and negative social
and environmental externalities differ widely, depending on source
of biomass, type of conversion technology and local circumstances.
That leads to diversion of food to the area of energy generation. In
the contemporary period world has seen an enraged debate on this
topic.

Millions of people in the developing countries are dependent on

 
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traditional means of energy but the present trend may transfer the
food cultivation land to bio-energy generation.

Biotechnology
In the present context the role of biotechnology is pivotal in the
development of future food generation. It is not restricted only to
develop new varieties for cultivation but the analysis of the
convention varieties, mapping and documentation of biodiversity,
manipulation of living organisms and spans the large range of
activities from conventional techniques for fermentation and plant
and animal breeding to recent innovations in tissue culture,
irradiation, genomics and augment natural breeding.

Biotechnology has always been on the cutting edge of change.

Change is rapid, the domains involved are numerous, and there is a
significant lack of transparent communication among actors. Hence
assessment of modern biotechnology is lagging behind
development; information can be anecdotal and contradictory, and
uncertainty on benefits and harms is unavoidable. There is a wide
range of perspectives on the environmental, human health and
economic risks and benefits of modern biotechnology; many of
these risks are as yet unknown. This will certainly influence on
agro-marketing not only within the country but at the global level
and the agreement in the world.

The application of modern biotechnology outside containment, such

as the use of genetically modified (GM) crops is much more
contentious.

These processes require new kinds of support for the public to

critically engage in assessments of the technical, social, political,
cultural, gender, legal, environmental and economic impacts of
modern biotechnology. Biotechnologies should be used to maintain
local expertise and resources so that the capacity for further
research resides within the local community. Such R&D would put
much needed emphasis onto participatory breeding projects and
agro-ecology.

Natural resource management

Natural resources, especially those of soil, water, plant and animal
diversity, vegetation cover, renewable energy sources, climate and
ecosystem services are fundamental for the structure and function
of agricultural systems and for social and environmental
sustainability, in support of life on earth.

Earlier, global agricultural development was narrowly focused on

increased productivity rather than on a more holistic integration of
natural resources management (NRM) with food and nutritional
security. But today, a holistic, or systems-oriented approach, is
preferred because it can address the difficult issues associated with

 
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the complexity of food and other production systems as well as

availability in different ecologies, locations and cultures. And hence
different methods as practiced in second and third green revolution
has become the core step of the agriculture today.

Check your progress

1. Why are cultivation practices changing?
2. Highlight the factors influencing on farming practices.
3. What are the major threats to quality of cultivation?

6.6 FISHING AS AN ACTIVITY IN THE WORLD

We have seen that the major food generation comes from

agriculture. However the capacity of land to produce food is limited
and this capacity cannot be over shoot. And hence one such
activity to generate food is fishing. In the past, fishing as an
economic and food generating activity was in existence even before
the practice of cultivation. But that was limited only to coastal areas
and the inland water bodies like rivers and ponds.

Fisheries play an important role in socio-economic development of

the country, generating employment and income and stimulating
growth of new subsidiary industries. It is also a source of cheap and
nutritious source of food and an important foreign exchange earner.

In the world fishing activity is concentrated in following areas.

There are four important commercial fishing areas in the world,
which are all, located in the temperate region.

1. the North west Pacific-seas bordering central and northern

Japan, northern China, Korea and northeastern Russia;
2. the Northwest Atlantic coast of Newfoundland and New
England;
3. the Northeast Atlantic comprising shallow waters off the
European coast extending from the Barents Sea in the north to
the Bay of Biscay;
4. the Northeast Pacific from Alaska to California.

1. Northwest Pacific: Japan occupies a strategic position for

fishing in this ground. The mixing of two currents, Kuro-shio, warm
waters with the cold waters of the Oya-shio favors the vigorous
growth of fish in the inter-island straits and seas and in the nearby
shallow waters.

The fisheries of Japan have an annual production of about 3 billion

kilograms and marine products account for about 20-25 per cent of
the World's total output. The coasts of Japan, the Pacific waters

 
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east of Japan and the Yellow and China seas and the coasts of
Korea and Karafuto and the margins of the Okhtosk sea-are the
areas of concentration of fishing. Japan has a total coastline of
17000 miles. In the vast and extensive fishing grounds, various
types of fish, viz., cod, herring, salmon, mackerel, trout, bonito, tuna
and lobster, etc. are usually caught in large numbers. Most of the
catches are locally consumed.

2. Northwest Atlantic (The coasts of Newfoundland and New

England): The banks off the coasts of the New England and
Newfoundland constitute one of the most important fishing grounds
of the world. There are many submerged platforms in this area. The
continental shelf is very broad and has many banks. Grand Banks,
south-east of Newfoundland, with an area of 37,000 sq. miles: the
Sable Island Bank, southeast of Nova Scotia, with an area of about
7000 sq. miles; the Georges Banks, immediately east of Cape Cod,
with an area of 8500 sq. miles are the important sources of fish
particularly of cod and haddock. Besides cod and haddock, other
species like herring, mackerel, flounder are also caught in this area.
The maximum catches are made along the coasts of Nova Scotia
and Newfoundland. ST. John, Halifax, Portland, Nova Scotia,
Boston, and New York are the ports through which fishing is largely
done.

This area is a good breeding ground for fish as it is the meeting

place of the warm Gulf Stream and cold Labrador Current. So it
abounds in organic food and plankton. Oysters, clams and lobsters
are also caught

3. North-east Atlantic (The coasts of North-west Europe):

The seas in this area are an important fishing ground in the world.
Britain, France, Holland and Norway are the four leading nations
participating in large-scale fishing. The location of the Netherlands
in the North Sea made it natural for the Dutch to engage in fishing,
especially for herring. The North Sea contains submerged land and
is shallow with many banks, viz., Dogger Bank and Great Fisher
Bank. Due to the influence of warm Gulf Stream, the sea remains
free from ice and available for fishing all the year round. it is an
important fishing ground of the world responsible for the production
of 25 per cent of the whole world's total production. The waters of
this area are rich in plankton-the basic food supply of fish.

The numerous water inlets (fiords) of Norway are ideal for fishing.
The Trondheim Fiord and Sogne Fiord are more than 100 miles
long providing ample scope for fishing. Lofoten inlands are noted
for the production and export of cod liver oil. In Britain, the fishing
activity is concentrated on the eastern coasts facing the North Sea.
Grimsby is the greatest fishing port of the world for the variety and
value of fish landed. Cod, herring, halibut and sardines form the
main catch. Oysters are also caught.

 
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4. Northeast Pacific (The western coasts of North America). The

area extends from Alaska to California and is noted for salmon,
pilchard and tuna fisheries. Halibut and other species are also
caught. The value of the catch in U.S.A exceeds 65 million dollars
annually. The Canadian catch was also of the same value.
California has developed fish canning. The important canning items
are tuna, sardines and mackerel. The deep water on the continental
shelf off Alaska and British Columbia are the best halibut-fishing
source of the world. Along with raw fish consumption, fish canning
is highly important activity in the USA, Japan, Canada U.K,
Netherlands and Germany.

Fresh-water fisheries are located in large lakes and river systems

near areas of dense population. The production of fisheries of
fresh-water is not so large like seawater fisheries. In most cases,
subsistence fishing is practiced in the fresh-water whereas
commercial fishing has developed in the seawater. Fresh-Water
fisheries of the Great Lakes. A well-organized commercial fishing
industry has developed on the shores of the Great lakes. The most
common species caught in the Lakes include lake herring, trout,
yellow pike, white fish yellow perch, blue pike and carp.

Salmon fisheries of the Northern Pacific Rivers. Fishing extends

from Oregon to northern Japan through Washington, British
Columbia, Alaska, Siberia and Sakhalin. Salmon of five different
species are caught in large numbers in the rivers with the help of
gill nets trawlers.

Coastal fisheries : The coastal fishing depends on density of

population of adjacent lands, available means of transport, the
number and location of shallow coastal indentations and the variety
of fish. Coastal fishing is discussed under two heads:
1. Low-latitude and middle-latitude coastal fisheries.
2. Open-sea fisheries or off-shore fishing.
There are three important areas,
a. European North Atlantic from northern Spain to the White Sea in
northern Russia,
b. American North Atlantic from southern New England to northern
Labrador,
c. Asian Pacific from southern China to northern Kamchatka.

More than 3 million populations are engaged in fishing in these

waters. The importance of fishing in these areas is due to both
physical and economic factors

Physical factors :
a. The existence of banks in the shallow seas favors the growth of
fish.
b. Coastline. Long coastline with indentations provides bases for

 
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fishing operations.
c. Depth and temperature of water. Depth and temperature of
waters affect directly the variety and abundance of fish, which
are in most cases found within a depth of 600 ft. Mixing of
waters of different temperatures favors the growth of fish as
plankton is plentiful there.
d. Cool climate. In colder regions fishing is developed as fish
preservation is easier.

In the world about 75% of the area is covered by water. However,

the effective utilization of the water as a source of food generation
is not carried out. In terms of fisheries, major emphasis is on
coastal and inland fisheries. The role of ocean fishing is only about
2% of the total fish catch. In India too the scenario is not much
different.

The introduction of mechanized boats and Deep Sea fishing

vessels has strategically shifted Indian fishing from traditional to
modern methods, with yields reaching six million tonnes, slightly
more than half of which from inland sources, including aquaculture.
The export earning is about 1.4 billion dollar.
In India, Fish production has increased more than fivefold since
independence. It rose from only 800,000 tons in 1950 to 4.1 million
tons in the early 1990s. This was possible through extensive and
intensive inland fish farming, modernize coastal fisheries, and
encourage deep-sea fishing through joint ventures. That led to a
more than fourfold increase in coastal fish production to the tune of
2.4 million tons in 1990. The increase in inland fish production was
even eightfold from 1950 to in 1990 at about 1.7 million tons. The
value of fish and processed fish exports increased from less than 1
percent of the total value of exports in 1960 to 3.6 percent in 1993.

The important marine fish in Indian waters are mackerel, sardines,

Bombay duck, shark, ray, perch, croaker, carangid, sole, ribbonfish,
whitebait, tuna, silverbelly, prawn, and cuttlefish. The main
freshwater fish are carp and catfish; the main brackish-water fish
are hilsa (a variety of shad), and mullet. Great potential exists for
expanding the nation's fishing industry. India's exclusive economic
zone, stretching 200 nautical miles into the Indian Ocean,
encompasses more than 2 million square kilometers. Till 1980, only
about 33 percent of that area was being exploited. The potential
annual catch from the area has been estimated at 4.5 million tons.
In addition to this marine zone, India has about 1.4 million hectares
of brackish water available for aquaculture, of which only 60,000
hectares were being farmed in the early 1990s; about 1.6 million
hectares of freshwater lakes, ponds, and swamps; and nearly
64,000 kilometers of rivers and streams.

In 1990 there were 1.7 million full-time fishermen, 1.3 million part-
time fishermen, and 2.3 million occasional fishermen, many of

 
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whom worked as salt-makers, ferrymen, or seamen, or operated

boats for hire. In the early 1990s, the fishing fleet consisted of
180,000 traditional craft powered by sails or oars, 26,000 motorized
traditional craft, and some 34,000 mechanized boats.

In India fisheries research and training institutions are supported by

central and state governments that deserve much of the credit for
the expansion and improvements in the Indian fishing industry.
Two major programs were implemented for the development of
fishing; establishing fish farmers' development agencies and the
National Programme of Fish Seed Development that has led to
encouragingly increased production. Apart from four main fishing
harbors--Kochi (Kerala), Madras (Tamil Nadu), Vishakhapatnam
(Andhra Pradesh), and Roychowk in Calcutta (West Bengal),
twenty-three minor fishing harbors and ninety-five fish-landing
centers are designated to provide landing and berthing facilities to
fishing craft.

India is one of the world's leading seafood exporting nations. This

achievement was largely a result of significant advancements in
India's freezing facilities since the 1960s, advancements that
enabled India's seafood products to meet international standards.
Frozen shrimp, a high-value item, has become the dominant
seafood export. Other significant export items are frozen frog legs,
frozen lobster tails, dried fish, and shark fins, much of which is
exported to seafood-loving Japan. During the eighth plan, marine
products were identified as having major export potential.

However, due to high concentration of population in the coastal

area domestic demand for fish is also high. Coastal population
survives predominantly on fish as a source of food.

Check your progress

1. Why is fishing the alternative food generating activity?
2. List the major fishing grounds in the world.
3. What are the strong factors of Indian fishing?

 
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6.7 LIVESTOCK REARING AS AN ACTIVITY IN THE

WORLD

Earlier we have seen that fish and other marine products are
considered as food in the world. Apart from that man has exploited
animals as a source of food. Ever since the creation of mankind,
the major thrust has been on the search for food for existence.
Thus, for human population, the nature provided a continuous
supply of food. Plants and animals were utilised by man as foods
during the prehistoric period. Subsequent domestication of animals
and evolution of crop raising activities made animals farming as a
subsidiary to agriculture. In western countries, animal husbandry is
even now referred to as ‘Animal Agriculture’. However, of late, dairy
industry has shown the ability to sustain itself as a profitable
industry in many sphere over-powering the traditional dominance
exercised by agriculture. This trend is witnessed all over the world.

Livestock production is growing very rapidly, which is interpreted to

be the result of the increasing demand for animal products. Since
1960, global meat production has more than trebled, milk
production has nearly doubled and egg production has increased by
nearly four times. This is attributed partly to the rise in population,
as well as to the increase in affluence in many countries due
technology and research efforts. It is expected that the global
production and consumption of meat will continue to rise, from 233
million metric tons (Mt) in the year 2000 to 300 million Mt in 2020,
as will that of milk, from 568 to 700 million Mt over the same period.
Egg production will also increase further by 30%.

There has been a great rise in the production of livestock products

and this is expected to continue in the future. This is particularly the
case in developing countries. The greatest increase is in the
production of poultry and pigs, as well as eggs and milk. However,
this overall increase obscures the fact that the increased supply is
restricted to certain countries and regions, and is not occurring in
the poorer African countries. Consumption of livestock based food
is declining in these countries, from an already low level, as
population increases. Although there is overconsumption of meat in
developed regions, there is clearly a need to promote the
development of livestock production and the consumption of
livestock based food in many developing countries, to improve
physical and mental health and fitness. Livestock production can
make good use of resources, some of which would otherwise not be
used, and contributes high quality protein and important
micronutrients to the human diet.

 
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Globally cow is the most preferred animal for the purpose of

milching. About 80% of the total; milk in the world is procured from
cow. However along with cow buffalo, goat, camel etc. are also
exploited for the milching purpose.

In the milk production USA id the largest cow milk producer in the
world accounting for 14.9% of world production. The top milk
procuring countries are India, USA, China, Russian Federation,
Germany, Brazil, France, New Zealand, UK, Poland etc.

In terms of milk consumption as fluid milk and processed products

per person varies widely from highs in Europe and North America to
lows in Asia. However, as the various regions of the world become
more integrated through travel and migration, these trends are
changing, a factor which needs to be considered by product
developers and marketers of milk and milk products in various
countries of the world.

Even within regions such as Europe, the custom of milk

consumption has varied greatly. Consider for example the high
consumption of fluid milk in countries like Finland, Norway and
Sweden compared to France and Italy where cheeses have tended
to dominate milk consumption. When you also consider the
climates of these regions, it would appear that the culture of
producing more stable products like cheese in hotter climates as a
means of preservation is evident.

The contribution of dairy animal is widely recognised. Our country is

blessed with vast dairy resource. Dairy farming involves a group of
interaction of many factors that influence production & reproduction,
environment and management. Dairy cooperatives cover about
60,000 villages all over India and only 12 to 14 per cent of total milk
production is canalized through organised sector. India has become
the world’s largest milk producer but its share in the world milk
trade is very limited.

Dairying in India is by large in the hands of small or marginal

landholders and agriculture laborers. Eighty per cent farm families
in India possess cattle and/or buffalo. Cooperative dairying has
changed the life-style of farm family. Livestock keeping is a
subsidiary activity to agriculture over long time but now become the
major enterprise economically and the crop production are
becoming dependent on dairying. Dairying which was once a
subsidiary enterprise, to agriculture; Milk production at cooperative
level in villages is more powerful entities generating a better picture
in dairy field. However, the value addition in case of milk in India is
comparatively poor due to distance factor and the density of
infrastructure.

While in case of meat production, in India, where precious national

 
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parks are already under threat from illegal cattle-grazing, is the

world's eighth largest producer of meat. Despite the sacred place
cows occupy in Hindu culture, and despite the importance of
buffaloes in agricultural work, India continues to churn out an
annual 4.9 million tones of meat. Statistics compiled by the United
Nations' Food and Agriculture Organisation (FAO) show that the
total number of animals slaughtered for meat in India nearly
doubled from 66,299,600 in 1980 to 106,239,000 in 2000. In a
world increasingly facing scarcity with regard to basic human
requirements, as evidenced all too clearly in last year's global food
shortages, increasing meat production looks to be progressively
unsustainable. This suggests the development of the cultural traits.

Rearing animals for human consumption is a grain-intensive

process. Expert suggests that the populations of India and China
begin to consume more meat, an increasingly greater strain will be
placed on grain supplies, exacerbating world hunger. A survey
suggest that If all the grain currently fed to livestock in the United
States were consumed directly by people, the number of people
who could be fed would be nearly 800 million.

Check your progress

1. State the advantages of milk as food?
2. Understand the progress of Indian dairy activity.
3. List the limitations of Indian livestock rearing activity

6.8 LET US SUM UP

Thus in this unit we have seen that every human being requires
food not only in terms of quality but in certain ratio of nutrition. And
hence man has started his survival activities from forest collection
to hunting, fishing and finally cultivation. Over a period of time he
has started clubbing different activities to get more yields.

In the complexity of civilization he has started facing number of

problems in the practice of the activity. Application of technology
without understanding the nature was a reason in disguise.
After understanding that mere cultivation is not appropriate to fulfill
needs he has started alternative food like fishing animal rearing in a
serious manner applying technology in the area. The purpose for all
is to provide secured, quality food. However this became the
backbreaking task which we are going to see in the next session.

 
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6.9 Unit End Exercise

1. Why is food necessary for man?
2. Explain the impacts of inappropriate food on human body.
3. Elaborate the functions of food on human body.
4. Explain the discourse of agricultural development in the world.
5. What id the impact of industrialization on agriculture.
6. Explain future trend in agricultural development.
7. Elaborate major fishing grounds in the world
8. Why is fishing having more scope in the world as an food
generating activity?
9. Elucidate the growth of dairy activity in India.
10. Explain major threats to agriculture in the world.

 
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7
FOOD TRADE, WORLD HUNGER & FOOD
SECURITY
Unit Structure
7.0 Objectives
7.1 Introduction
7.2 Food rich & food poor areas in the world
7.3 Does food have a shortfall in the world
7.4 Indian scenario
7.5 What are the causes of hunger?
7.6 Green Revolution - the earlier answer for food security
7.7 Trade of food in the world
7.8 Food trade & world strategies
7.9 The concept of food security
7.10 Patterns of global hunger
7.11 Solutions to hunger – global & Indian scenario
7.12 Food security in India
7.13 Let Us Sum Up
7.14 Unit End Exercises

7.0 OBJECTIVES

Hence, after learning this unit you will be able to understand

• Major demand and supply areas of food in the world
• Why is availability of food a problem
• How the prospects of the country is bleak in case of food
insecurity
• The status of India in terms of food certainty

7.1 INTRODUCTION

In the earlier session we have seen that food is the essentiality of

man and in different regions of the world food is grown. There is no
country in the world where food is either not grown or cannot be
grown. However, every individual in the world is happy form the
food he or she gets. This discrepancy we are going to understand
in this unit.

 
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7.2 FOOD RICH & FOOD POOR AREAS IN THE

WORLD

In the earlier session we have seen that food is the most necessity
for human being. With the growing population in the world, need for
food also increased. However, the factors required for food
generation are not unlimited. The potency of these factors cannot
grow with the rate of population growth.
Being an economic activity, agriculture also an influenced by
human civilization. Methods utilized to cultivate determine the crops
to be cultivated, the area covered by the crop, the return from the
crop, the bargaining capacity of the crop in the local as well as
distant market is determined by the technology.

Availability of food in the world is a result of many factors. However,

majority of those are oriented to geographical and climatic factors.
Agriculture is one of the activities which are predominantly
dependant on nature. Factors like climate, soil, availability of water
influence on agricultural development and growth.

In absence or the shortage of food, population faces the hunger

situation. This leads to malnutrition or the under nutrition.

The hunger in the world has certain facets like fuel shortage, of fuel,
fiber, and the rift between people in both political as well as social.
Development of profit oriented activity has changed the economic
equations in the world. The land which was under food crops earlier
is now economically exploited as an asset.

According to United Nations estimates that close to 1 billion suffer

from chronic hunger. But this number, which is only a crude
estimate, leaves out those suffering from vitamin and nutrient
deficiencies and other forms of malnutrition. The total number of
food insecure people who are malnourished or lacking critical
nutrients is probably closer to 3 billion—about half of humanity. The
severity of this situation is made clear by the United Nations
estimate of over a year ago that approximately 18,000 children die
daily as a direct or indirect consequence of malnutrition. Longer-
term crisis of agriculture and food that has already left billions
hungry and malnourished. In the recent time 2008 was considered
as a hunger year in the world.

And hence, availability of food in terms of generation as well as

consumption is unique scenario in the world which we will observe
as below. In simple terms it can be called as hungry world.

 
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Check your progress

2. What are the factors determine food availability?
3. State the hunger situation in the world?
4. What is the role of agriculture in food generation?

7.3 DOES FOOD HAVE A SHORTFALL IN THE

WORLD?

World hunger refers to the multitudes of people presently facing the

risk of an insufficient (quantity) or inadequate (quality) food supply,
something known as food insecurity. This problem has led to
detriments from the insidious, such as stunted growth and a greater
risk of contracting disease, to the obvious, namely starvation and
death.

The World Food Programme (WFP) of the United Nations (UN)

reports that daily, over 800 million people go hungry while the
Hunger Site says that every 3.2 seconds, someone in the world
dies of hunger. Most of the world's hungry (over 40%) are
concentrated in China and India, with the rest found mostly in sub-
Saharan Africa, Asia and Latin America . And even developed
nations such as the USA and Britain have millions of hungry people
within their borders.

The situation is so dreadful in the world that protests may erupt

anywhere today, any time, and rich countries aren't immune,
including America and the European countries. In the world millions
of people are either undernourished or mal-nourished.
Unprecedented wealth gap between rich and poor, a dying middle
class, and growing millions in extreme poverty. The process of
economic fluctuations like recession are also responsible for it.

The prices of necessary food grains in the world are increasing at

the rapid rate. The grains like wheat soya been, corns are very
high. Under conditions of duress, hunger is the clearest symptom,
it's rising, and current food inflation threatens to spiral it out of
control if nothing is done to address it. It's the highest in decade of
2001-10.

 
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World agriculture produces enough food calories in the form of

seeds, milk, meat and other vegetarian as well as animal forms to
meet the energy needs of the entire nearly 6 billion plus people who
are alive today. Increased production based on advances in seed,
water, and environmental technologies, and their wider
dissemination especially in developing countries, have removed
insufficient production as a cause of food shortage for the world as
a whole. Global agriculture tries to keep pace with population
growth, and world food security concept also safeguards the
consumption by flow of food materials in case of disastrous
production failure. But overemphasis on production of calories
may jeopardize the production of other protein- or micronutrient-rich
foods that also enter into the calculus of global food security or
shortage which are really a production as well as distribution
issues.

Vegetarian diets are typical in a wide range in developing countries

being having the advantage of climatic diversity, but worldwide the
demand for meat is growing. Diets in industrialized countries differ
widely with respect to their composition; however emphasize on the
animal products. Food shortage of the future, calculated on the
basis of total future demand for grain consumed directly or in the
form of animal foods, will be conditioned by whether peoples
adopting richer diets follow the path of European or North American
region. In that case the cost of food increases as the grain-to-
livestock ratios, are very high as part of animal feed. Non-animal
food is the legacy of oriental people who are becoming a market for
the animal food from the western world. In a feedlot, it takes two
kilos (kilograms) of grain to produce one kilo of chicken or fish, four
kilos to produce one kilo of pork, and seven to produce one kilo of
beef. Some suggest the ratios may be even higher: 3:1, 6:1, and
16:1. It means that much more population can be fed on the grains
by changing the food habits.

Food shortage also coincides with adequate calorie production

where the foods consumed are deficient in protein or
micronutrients. Diets may be adequate in quantity but not quality.
There are three most common micronutrient deficiencies in the
world; those of iron, iodine, and vitamin A. Such deficiencies are
most common in vegetarian or near-vegetarian diets that lack
variety, both because such diets tend to be consumed by people
who lack resources to acquire greater variety and because some
nutrients are more abundant in animal foods.

That means food shortage is a function of

Decline in the yield of the crop perhaps oriented to agro-
climatic circumstances.
Distribution of the food in the region
Shortage of food oriented to natural or human disasters
Food habits &

 
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Cost factor of the food.

The year 2008 is considered as the world hunger year as the

availability of food in the world declined . global food prices rose by
83%. As of March 2008, average world wheat prices were 130%
above their level a year earlier, soya prices were 87% higher, rice
had climbed 74%, and maize was up 31%. However, it a point of
deb
ate
World hunger facts that
whe
• More than 15 million people die each year from
ther
starvation and malnutrition-related diseases.
it is
• Of those, three-fourths are children under the age of
a
five.
matt
• In the time it takes to read this page article, another er
150 people may die of malnutrition-related diseases of
or starvation. shor
• Worldwide, 800 million people will go to bed hungry tage
tonight. of
• More than 1 billion people worldwide suffering from food
food shortages -- and more than 24,000 people die or
every day from hunger-related causes the
pric
e rise. To understand the situation following factors were found
responsible for the food crisis.

• Droughts in major wheat-producing countries in 2005-06

• Low grain reserves in many countries

• High oil prices influencing transport and other food supply

programmes
• A doubling of per-capita meat consumption in some
developing countries and the diversion of grains for the
purpose.
• Diversion of 5% of the world’s cereals to agro-fuels and bio-
fuels.

 
  129

Check your progress

1. What contribute to food shortage?

2. Why is vegetarian diet useful?

7.4 INDIAN SCENARIO

The status of hunger in India is equally bad. This is specifically
oriented to two factors; decline in productivity because of climatic
fluctuations and improper distribution of food particularly in remote
areas of India.

According to the 2008 Global Hunger Index, India ranks 66 out of

88 nations of developing countries and countries in transition. India
has more hungry people than any other country in the world
because of our highly bulged population.

India State Hunger Index in 2008, Madhya Pradesh has the most
severe level of hunger in the country, followed by Jharkhand and
Bihar. Punjab and Kerala scored the best on the Index.

In India we have variety of food options due to diversity of climate

and biodiversity. Although agriculture is backbone other food
generating activities like forestry collects like flowers nuts, fruits,
tubers as food, fishing, livestock rearing for flesh and milk and
poultry rearing are practiced hand in hand.

Agriculture and allied sector contributes 24% of the total GDP and
provide employment to around 67% Indian population. The
development in the agricultural field is surely oriented to the
technological development in India. Yield of food-grain in India
increased from 644 k.g. per hectare in 1966-67 to 1636 k.g. per
hectare in 2000-2001. This registered an impressive increase by
around two and half times. However, this was mainly brought about
by a more than 12 fold increase in the consumption of chemical
fertilizers (from 1.1 million ton to 13.56 million tons) during the same
period. Not only fertilizers but pesticides, mechanization and other
inputs have a sizable role in the development of agriculture.
Change in cropping from food grain orientation to cash crops is the
result of the same.

In the world poorest countries poor people starve more than some
few. This is particularly due to uneven distribution of not only food
but the opportunities. It is not necessary that people should get food

 
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available to their nearby shops or the public distribution shops

(ration shops) but it is equally important that they should have
capacity to purchase the food from such shops. In the tribal areas
of India food from ration shops is not consumed, remain unsold; the
root cause lies here.

After achieving independence about fifty years ago India was

having very poor status on the front of food production as well as
food distribution system. However, in last about 60 years India had
an excellent success in the generation of food. India is often
considered to be one of the great success stories in tackling the
food problem; the belief in success has to be scrutinized in the light
of the grim reality that we can observe. The story has two sides,
accomplishments as well as the setback.

First, pre-independence India had a stagnating agriculture, and this

has been firmly replaced by an imposing expansion of the
production possibilities in Indian agriculture, through innovative
departures. The technological limits have been widely expanded.
What holds up Indian food? Consumption today is not any
operational inability to produce more food, but a far reaching failure
to make the poor of the country able to afford enough food.

 
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India - Hunger Facts

• Hunger remains the No.1 cause of death in the world. Aids, Cancer etc. follow.
• There are 820 million chronically hungry people in the world.
• 1/3rd of the world’s hungry live in India.
• 836 million Indians survive on less than Rs. 20 (less than half-a-dollar) a day.
• Over 20 crore Indians will sleep hungry tonight.
• 10 million people die every year of chronic hunger and hunger-related diseases. Only
eight percent are the victims of hunger caused by high-profile earthquakes, floods,
droughts and wars.
• India has 212 million undernourished people– only marginally below the 215 million
estimated for 1990–92.
• 99% of the 1000 Adivasi households from 40 villages in the two states, who comprised
the total sample, experienced chronic hunger (unable to get two square meals, or at least
one square meal and one poor/partial meal, on even one day in the week prior to the
survey). Almost as many (24.1 per cent) had lived in conditions of semi-starvation during
the previous month.
• Over 7000 Indians die of hunger every day.
• Over 25 lakh Indians die of hunger every year.
• Despite substantial improvement in health since independence and a growth rate of 8
percent in recent years, under-nutrition remains a silent emergency in India, with almost
50 percent of Indian children underweight and more than 70 percent of the women and
children with serious nutritional deficiencies as anemia.
• The 1998– 99 Indian survey shows 57 percent of the children aged 0 – 3 years to be
either severely or moderately stunted and/or underweight.
• During 2006 – 2007, malnutrition contributed to seven million Indian children dying,
nearly two million before the age of one.
• 30% of newborn are of low birth weight, 56% of married women are anaemic and 79% of
children age 6-35 months are anaemic.
• The number of hungry people in India is always more than the number of people below
official poverty line (while around 37% of rural households were below the poverty line in
1993-94, 80% of households suffered under nutrition).
Sources :
UN World Food Programme
UN World Health Organization: Global Database on Child Growth and Malnutrition, 2006
UN Food and Agriculture Organization: SOFI 2006 Report
National Commission for Enterprises in the Unorganized Sector (India)
National Family Health Survey 2005 – 06 (NFHS-3) (India)
Centre for Environment and Food Security (India)
Rural 21 (India)

Secondly, the famines which were so common before

independence were substantial famines that so plagued India until
independence has been effectively eliminated. However, the
endemic hunger that blights the lives of hundreds of millions of
people in this country could not ditched over long period of time.

Not only just availability of food but the availability of quality food is
yet beyond the grasp of Indian citizen. Chronically
undernourishment affects more than half of all adult women result
into suffering from anemia. What is sometimes called “protein-
energy malnutrition” - are nearly twice as high in India compare to
desert part of Africa.

Hunger is a problem of not only poor income, but the food prices
which is a result of people’s ability to buy food, and thus affect the
food entitlements they effectively enjoy.

 
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It is also crucial to use the means of specialized food that

particularly helps poor children, such as more extensive use of
feeding in the school. This will not only increase the incentive of
children to go to school, but also actually make them healthier and
less undernourished.

Health care particularly in the early part of life (pre-natal as well as

early childhood) is a very crucial factor in the development of poor
health. Lack of basic and effective education also contributes to
undernourishment, because knowledge and communication
pertaining to nutritive and quality food in time are important, but
also because the need to secure jobs and incomes are influenced
by the level of education, and not the quality of life. When a child
does not consume appropriate food the impact is a very long term.
We are losing not only the healthy labour force but the prospective
professional manpower in the country.

One of the solutions for such grim situation is to search for the
alternate sources. On the front of alternative food in India domestic
meat production is estimated at 1 lakh million tonnes, while fish
production is projected at 72.5 lakh tones but processing levels of
these are taken into consideration, then they have been stagnant
between two and four per cent. This is specifically because 70 per
cent of the meat and poultry production in the country is primarily in
the unorganized sector. The area faces Poor post-harvest
equipment, inadequate processing technology, storage facility, bad
infrastructural facilities such as irregular power supply, high inland
transportation costs and lack of cold chain resulted in loss of more
than 25 per cent of meat, poultry and fish production. However, it is
a fact that we export 50 per cent of the fish production to the
ASEAN region.

Check your progress

1. Why was green revolution a need in India?
2. What are the long term impacts of poor quality food on health?

7.5 WHAT ARE THE CAUSES OF HUNGER?

Hunger being the universality in the world is having variety of

causes. following are some important one.

a) Poverty is the principal cause of hunger.

World Bank has estimated that there were an estimated 982 million
poor people in developing countries who live on $1.25 a day or
less. This compares to the later FAO estimate of 1.02 billion
undernourished people in the world. Extreme poverty is an
alarming problem in the world’s developing regions although the
income levels in the world are enhanced. Progress in poverty
reduction has been concentrated in Asia, and especially, East Asia,

 
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with the major improvement occurring in China. In Sub-Saharan

Africa, the number of people in extreme poverty has
increased. The statement that 'poverty is the principal cause of
hunger' is, though correct, unsatisfying.

b) Harmful economic systems are the principal cause of

poverty and hunger.

Another important underlying cause of poverty and hunger is the

ordinary operation of the economic and political systems in the
world. Essentially control over resources and income is based on
military, political and economic power that typically ends up in the
hands of a few, who live well, while those at the bottom barely
survive, if they do. This control is not isolated in manner but it is a
nexus. Even India has observed it in late 1960s when USA has
provided food to starved India under PL-480 with political
conditions.
c) Conflict as a cause of hunger and poverty.

Even after practicing thousands of warfare and two world wars and
a long cold war, socio-political clashes in the world are leaving
lakhs of refugees. By the end of 2008, the total number of refugees
under UNHCR’s mandate exceeded 10 million. The number of
conflict-induced internally displaced persons (IDPs) reached some
26 million worldwide at the end of the year. Estimating exact figures
on the number of stateless people is always difficult but, what is
observed through it is, and anguishing for those involved conflict is
less important as poverty and its causes as a cause of hunger.

d) Hunger is also a cause of poverty.

This is one of the vicious cycle that by causing poor health, low
levels of energy, and even mental impairment, hunger can lead to
even greater poverty by reducing people's ability to work and
learn. Possibilities of opportunities and prospects become bleak
due to poor general and techno-scientific literacy and better health.

e) Climate change

Climate change is increasingly viewed as a current and future

cause of hunger and poverty. Increasing drought, famines &
flooding, and changing climatic patterns requiring a change in crops
and farming practices

Will lead to shortage of food and food prospects. It estimated that

Climate change, global warming and the effect on poor people such
as Global warming causes 300,000 deaths a year. Today it may be
a matter of food which can be transported over a distance but in
future there is a possibility that water too will be matter of security.
Or food shortages may bring down civilization?

 
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7.4.1 Progress in reducing the number of hungry people.

One important measure to reduce hunger is to decline the

population affected by the hunger. In 2209 the number of
undernourished people were 1.02 billion. If this can be reduced to
half by way of distribution and availability of food it will become an
example to the world as a milestone particularly in the area of Asia,
and in Latin America and the Caribbean.

7.5.2 Micronutrients

In developing countries availability of food amon the masses is

comparatively of sub-standard quality. Availability of micro-nutrients
particularly vitamins and minerals, which are important for health. 1
out of 3 people in developing countries are affected by vitamin and
mineral deficiencies, according to the World Health Organization.
Three, perhaps the most important in terms of health consequences
for poor people in developing countries, are:
Vitamin A Vitamin A deficiency can cause night blindness and
reduces the body's resistance to disease. In children Vitamin A
deficiency can also cause growth retardation. Between 100 and 140
million children are vitamin A deficient. An estimated 250,000 to
500 000 vitamin A-deficient children become blind every year, half
of them dying within 12 months of losing their sight.

IRON

Iron deficiency is a principal cause of anemia. Two billion people—

over 30 percent of the world’s population—are anemic, mainly due
to iron deficiency, and, in developing countries, frequently
exacerbated by malaria and worm infections. For children, health
consequences include premature birth, low birth weight, infections,
and elevated risk of death. Later, physical and cognitive
development are impaired, resulting in lowered school
performance. For pregnant women, anemia contributes to 20
percent of all maternal deaths according to World Health
Organization.

IODINE

Iodine deficiency disorders (IDD) jeopardize children’s mental

health– often their very lives. Serious iodine deficiency during
pregnancy may result in stillbirths, abortions and congenital
abnormalities such as cretinism, a grave, irreversible form of mental
retardation that affects people living in iodine-deficient areas of
Africa and Asia. Iodine deficiency also causes mental impairment
that lowers intellectual prowess at home, at school, and at work.
Iodine deficiency affects over 740 million people, 13 percent of the

 
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world’s population. Fifty million people have some degree of mental

impairment caused by Iodine deficiency.

Evidently, the two main causes of world hunger - disaster and

poverty are unlikely to fade away on their own because the former
is simply a fact of living on earth while the latter is a deep-rooted,
self-propagating cycle. At the same time, while the main solutions
to these problems, namely early-warning systems and foreign aid
might help to reduce the problem of world hunger to some extent,
the manifold economic and political complications that surround the
giving of aid makes this unlikely to be a quick fix. Perhaps someday
world hunger will be successfully eliminated since this is by no
means impossible, but sadly this does not seem likely to happen
within the next few decades. New technology is always at the
doorstep but recognizing optimum technology becomes the task as
it itself may generate future problems. Thousands of acres of land
became saline and water logged in the areas of the command area
of Indira Gandhi national canal in Rajasthan in late 1980s support
this fact.
And hence elimination of hunger is a multi-faceted task where the
stakeholders are government and people both.

Check your progress

1. List the causes of hunger?
2. Understand the association between poverty & hunger.

7.6 GREEN REVOLUTION - THE EARLIER ANSWER

FOR FOOD SECURITY

Green Revolution means revolutionary change in agriculture in

order to make a massive production in terms of food as well as raw
materials. The beginnings of the Green Revolution are often
attributed to Norman Borlaug, an American scientist interested in
agriculture. In the 1940s, he began to conduct a research in Mexico
and developed new disease resistance high-yield varieties of
wheat. By combining Borlaug's wheat varieties with new
mechanized agricultural technologies, Mexico was able to produce
more wheat than was needed by its own citizens, leading to the
capacity of export which was far from reality earlier. After the
success of the Green Revolution in Mexico, its technologies spread
worldwide in the 1950s and 1960s. The United States for instance,
imported about half of its wheat in the 1940s but after using Green
Revolution technologies, it became self-sufficient in the 1950s and
became an exporter by the 1960s.

Green revolution was introduced in 1966 in India which in the then

period was starving state. The Government of India has started this
revolution in collaboration with the State Governments and with co-
operation of the common Indian farmers, through the local
organisations like village Panchayat and Zilla Parishad.

 
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Green revolution is effected through high-yielding varieties of seed,

natural and chemical fertilizer, good irrigation system, soil
conservation, soil-test, rotation of crops, enough insecticides,
mechanization of farming through power tillers, motor, tractors,
water-pumps, electricity, large holdings, co-operative farming and
educating and enlightening the farmers.

High yielding varieties of seeds result into a large output of grains.

The Government of India brought highly productive seeds from
other countries and tested them on our soil. Some of these kinds
showed very good results. In the later period government founded
some research centres where the scientists have discovered many
kinds of high-breed (Cross-breed) seeds which can yield bumper
crops.

Along with seeds the programme requires good quality fertilizers

which were availed through imports in the earlier phase and later
through development of fertilizer industry. Another important
requirement was irrigation infrastructure. Government has already
constructed number of dams on the rivers like Mahanadi, Damodar
and Vakranangal. Many more dams are under construction yet.
Other technologies like testing of soil and efforts to increase the
productivity of soil, rotation cropping system in the low fertility
areas, use of insecticides and introduction of cooperative farming
has resulted into a positive change. The world has seen satisfactory
impacts in the area of agriculture and thus the availability of food.

Since fertilizers are largely what made the Green Revolution

possible, they forever changed agricultural practices because the
high yield varieties developed during this time cannot grow
successfully without the help of fertilizers.

Irrigation also played a large role in the Green Revolution and this
forever changed the areas where various crops can be grown. For
instance before the Green Revolution, agriculture was severely
limited to areas with a significant amount of rainfall, but by using
irrigation, water can be stored and sent to drier areas, putting more
land into agricultural production - thus increasing nationwide crop
yields.

In addition, the development of high yield varieties meant that only

a few species of say, rice started being grown. In India for example
there were about 30,000 rice varieties prior to the Green
Revolution, today there are around ten - all the most productive
types. By having this increased crop homogeneity though the types
were more prone to disease and pests because there were not
enough varieties to fight them off. In order to protect these few
varieties then, pesticide use grew as well.

 
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Finally, the use of Green Revolution technologies exponentially

increased the amount of food production worldwide. Places like
India and China that once feared famine have not experienced it
since implementing the use of IR8 rice and other food varieties.

Over a period of time it was observed that green revolution being a

package is not universally applicable particularly in the areas both
in India and world where the related infrastructure like irrigation,
fuel, machinery, fertilizers, insecticides is a scarcity.

And thus, region wise certain modification in the package having a

common aim of higher yield, and sustenance of activity were
developed. These were known as programmes of second green
revolution. In which, agro-allied activities were clubbed to
agriculture and new programmes like flori-apiculture, silviculture-
goat farming-rice cultivation were framed and found more
successful than the earlier package.

In the contemporary period the sphere of bio-technology has

provided a magic-stick through which eliminations of limitations of
the species is possible and thus totally new species only with the
benefits are practiced today. Further development like cloning
process perhaps will bring more certainty of food material vegetal
as well as animal to the mankind and his pet and drafts.

Check your progress

1. What is the meaning of green revolution?
2. Why was it failed in India?

7.7 TRADE OF FOOD IN THE WORLD

Food aid is hard to summarize briefly due to many related issues,

but in general it is about providing food and related assistance to
tackle hunger, either in emergency situations, or to help with
deeper, longer term hunger alleviation and achieve food security in
the areas where people do not have to live in hunger or in fear of
starvation.

With the level of technology and capabilities in the world today, one
could assume that solving world hunger should be easy.
Unfortunately it is not a technical issue as much as it is a political
and economic issue.

The areas of food generation in the world and the demand points
are having certain relationship

1. The areas which are bread-baskets in the world are mainly low
density population countries. Moreover, although the annual

 
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frequency of food generation in these countries is poor due to

limited consumption the surplus is comparatively high.
2. The surplus in these countries is properly maintained,
categorized and secured as a matter of trade article.
3. As food is one of the trade materials, it also becomes a part of
trade strategic of the country.

In case of the demand point regions which are either predominantly

under-developed or developing depict certain appearances.
1. They are high population countries with seasonal demand.
2. Some of these countries are the exporters of food depicting
inadequate trade plans.
3. The infrastructure in these countries to tackle the scarcity
situation is limited, buffer stock is either poor or not properly
maintained.
4. The wastage of food at crop-site and also at storage-site is
sizable.
5. In terms of other demands their bargaining power is limited and
hence, they become either the bait of the victim of expansion
strategies of the supply country.

Major food suppliers in the world are United States, Australia,

Canada, the European Union, Argentina, Uruguay Ukraine,
Kazakhstan and other members of the Russian Federation in case
of wheat. Major Rice exporters are Thailand, Vietnam, India
Pakistan, and USA while rice importers are Bangladesh,
Indonesia, the Islamic Republic of Iran, and Saudi Arabia
Democratic People's Republic of Korea, Iraq and the Philippines
and some of the African countries. Major importers of wheat are
Islamic republic of Iran, Saudi Arabia. Indonesia, Afghanistan, India,
Algeria, Libya, Tunisia, Egypt, Mexico Brazil etc.
Following are some of the important types of food aid in the world.
However they are categorized on the basis of aid provided by
developing countries.

Program Food Aid

Is a form of “in-kind aid” whereby food is grown in the donor country
for distribution or sale abroad. This is typically a government to
government transfer. Rather than being free food as such, recipient
countries typically purchase the food with money borrowed at lower
than market rates.

Relief, or Emergency Food Aid

This is typically for emergency situations, such in cases of war,
natural disasters, etc, where food is distributed for free. However,
as number of countries facing some forms of chronic food
insecurity have also become permanent recipients of this form of
aid.

 
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Project Food Aid

This is food aid delivered as part of a specific project related to
promoting agricultural or economic development, nutrition and food
security, such as food for work and school feeding programs.

Program Food Aid, or in-kind food aid, makes up the majority of aid
for the USA. Relief aid used to be a minor form of aid until the
1990s when it shifted to being the dominant factor, signifying both
the increase in emergencies, and after the end of the Cold War
where food aid as a political tool. Similar to relief aid, project food
aid is typically distributed by the World Food Programme (WFP),
Non-governmental organizations (NGOs), and occasionally by
government institutions.

There are certain problems observed with food aid in the world
those are as below
• It is a donor-driven system
• It promotes domestic interests of donor countries
• It is a foreign policy tool
• International institutions are driven by exporters
• Development is not necessarily the objective

Check your progress

1. Why only some countries have food surplus?

7.8 FOOD TRADE & WORLD STRATEGIES

Today USA is the largest producer and exporter of food in the

world. Thus food is considered as power today. Developed
countries are having the benefit of more yields on one side and the
availability of low population density and demand on another side
that leads to surplus of food. Being very poor in food production and
heavy demand for food in the market, developing countries become
the bait of the developed countries. This is called as ‘doctrine of
food as power’ in the world.

There are efforts today to develop the cartel of food exporting

countries as in case of petroleum exporting countries. Such
organization may control food export, raw materials and resource
movements, agricultural reforms. In the pre-industrial times and in
the period of early industrial period the access to food was not a
problem mainly oriented to more mortality rate as well as the overall
yield of the agricultural land was high due to organic farming but
after green revolution the picture was changed and along with the
introduction of technology demand for food is also increased.
Certain areas in the world which are having the benefit of limited
domestic demand exploit this opportunity to export their surplus.
However, this relationship is not simple as expected. These
countries are all developed and grassland countries. The trade

 
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policies of these countries are oriented to the process to control

resources and ever-dynamic neo-imperialism in the world
specifically over developing and underdeveloped countries. This
leads to various trends in food aid, technological support, migration
of industrial bases, general aid and loans from developed countries
to developing countries. From the receiver side it is a combine
effect of population growth, agricultural productivity, energy prices,
water scarcity, and climate change suggesting things won’t improve
any time soon.

Recently, the UN rapporteur argued that "we have enough food"

and that hunger is not the result of food being produced in
inefficient conditions, as claimed by the majority of scientists, think-
tanks and the agri-food industry.

Political and ethnic clashes in the world partially induced by the

warhead manufacturers also compel the countries to divert their
resources land water, money and capital as to tackle war like
siyuation. This reduces the agricultural production and gain food
exporters have their cake.

More than thirty million people die of malnutrition and starvation

every year, while large industrial farms export ever more
strawberries and cut flowers to affluent consumers. Excessive meat
production, again largely for the affluent, requires massive amounts
of feed grains that might otherwise sustain poor families. Giant
agribusiness, chemical and restaurant companies like Cargill,
Monsanto and McDonalds dominate the world's food chain, building
a global dependence on unhealthy and genetically dangerous
products. These companies are racing to secure patents on every
plant and living organism and their intensive advertising seeks to
persuade the world's consumers to eat more and more sweets,
snacks, burgers, and soft drinks.

Thus, food scarcity, food supply and trade strategies are all
monitored today and not the natural one.

Check your progress

1. What is the role of food as weapon?
2. List the thing demanded from developing countries in return of
food?

 
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7.9 THE CONCEPT OF FOOD SECURITY

After understanding the grim situation of the availability of food we
need to understand the concept of food security which provides the
solution to this problem.

What is food security? A simple definition has been given by the

World Bank (1986) - food security is access by all people at all
times to enough food for an active, healthy life. This implies
individual access in all seasons and all years not just for survival
but for active participation in society.

In the World Food Summit of 1996 defined food security as existing

"when all people at all times have access to sufficient, safe,
nutritious food to maintain a healthy and active life". Commonly, the
concept of food security is defined as including both physical and
economic access to food that meets people's dietary needs as well
as their food preferences. But food security is a complex
sustainable development issue, linked to health through
malnutrition, but also to sustainable economic development,
environment, and trade. There is a great deal of debate around
food security. If we fail to maintain above there has been food
insecurity. Food insecurity exists when all people, at all times, do
not have physical and economic access to the sufficient, safe and
nutritious food to meet their dietary needs and food preferences for
an active and healthy life.

Food security has three major dimensions:

• AVAILABILITY of sufficient quantities of food of appropriate
quality, supplied through domestic production or imports;
• ACCESS by households and individuals to adequate resources
to acquire appropriate foods for a nutritious diet; and
• UTILIZATION of food through adequate diet, water, sanitation,
and health care.

On defining food security have been summarized by Maxwell the

American economist in 1998 as identifying livelihood security as a
necessary and often sufficient condition for food security and
focuses on the long term viability of the household as a productive
and reproductive unit.

There should be the quality of the food availability rather than just
the quantity where the emphasis is more on subjective assessment.
A country and people are food secure when their food system
operates in such a way as to remove the fear that there will not be
enough to eat. In particular, food security will be achieved when the
poor and vulnerable, particularly women and children and those

 
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living in marginal areas, can have the assured adequate food they
want

Today food security is not only a physical concept of availability of

food but it is having physical, social, economic and Environmental
access facets.

Since early 1970s, when majority f the world developing countries

have gained their independence and tried to become independent
economic and sovereign entities roughly 5 phases of food security
can be observed.

1. 1974-1980: global food security - the world food crisis was

evident from famines in Africa, doubling of international grain prices
and large grain imports by the Soviet Union. FAO set up a
committee on World Food Security and a World Food Council were
established to monitor world food availability.

2. 1981-1985: food entitlement and structural adjustment -

questions of poverty and access featured since it was clear that
production on its own did not assure consumption, and people
needed access to food. This era coincided with structural
adjustment activities where poverty reduction and basic needs were
subordinate to debt management, macro-economic stability, etc.

3. 1986-1990: the golden age - the 1984/5 African famine and the
drawbacks of the social costs of structural adjustment changed the
perceptions of food security which rose up in the international
agenda.

4. 1990-1996: poverty emphasis, not food security - poverty

reduction was brought back to the front of the development stage
and displaced food security; many donors abandoned or
downgraded food security. Famines were seen to be far more
associated with war and with drought e.g. Southern Africa in 1992,
which appeared to be managed reasonably efficiently. Thus the
problem was not seen as a food security issue as it is but rather
one of managing food supplies in complex political emergencies
characterized by social and policy breakdown.

5. 1996-: the concept of sustenance – where another rise in food

prices and renewed concern about the ability of the world to feed
itself. It is a debate now that the agenda shift back to Malthusian
concerns of the 1970s with a focus on food production, often in high
potential areas or will the concern with consumption and access be
sustained?

Perhaps this will forward the concept of global citizenship through

which all members of the earth will be treated equally and will have
non-discriminative access to the needs of survival and growth.

 
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Which further require the better understanding of the platform i.e.

nature on which our survival and growth activities are based.

Some of the following factors are the associate filed although not
directly influencing on food assurance in the region but in the long
run those influence on food availability and the quality.

1. Soil degradation
2. Water resources
3. Biotechnology
4. Yield decline and associated actions by government and public.
5. Pesticides/pests
6. Urbanization
7. Nutrition and Micronutrients
8. Feed/cereals for animal/meat production
9. Fertilizer use
10. Women and intra-household resources
11. Food processing and safety
12. Poverty alleviation programmes in the region
13. Role of traditional foods
14. Energy use in agriculture
15. Perennial versus annual crops and Land Reports

Check your progress

1. List the dimensions of food security?
2. What is the meaning of food security?
3. List the factors responsible for food security?

7.10 PATTERNS OF GLOBAL HUNGER

World hunger is not new. At present, 850 million people – 13% of

the world's population – are chronically hungry.

Hunger situation in which a human being does not have to live in

hunger or fear starvation. According to the 1996 World Food
Summit, food security exists when every person has physical and
economic access at all times to healthy and nutritious food in
sufficient quantity to cover the needs of their daily ration and food
preferences in order to live a healthy and active life. As a concept it
can be applied at many levels: global, national, household and
individual. World-wide around 852 million men, women and children
are frequently hungry due to extreme poverty; while up to 2 billion
people lack food security due to varying degrees of poverty

The number of under-fed people has steadily climbed over the past
decade. Now, the World Food Programme estimates that the crisis
has driven another 100 million people into hunger, including even
urban middle class people in developing countries.
Although hunger cannot be catagorised in patterns as it is always
depict an impact of variety of factors like poverty, draught, poor

 
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distribution in a varying degree, it can be crudely highlighted into

following assemblages.

a) Poverty oriented

Food consumption levels reflect on poverty, families that don’t

suffer from chronic hunger are the ones with financial resources,
while the ones that suffer most are the ones without any financial
resources and are also that part of the population that will be
affected most in case of food shortages or famine. On this basis
food insecurity can be further sub-categorized either as chronic or
transitory. Chronic food insecurity translates into a high degree of
vulnerability to famine and hunger, ensuring food security
presupposes elimination of that vulnerability. Chronic hunger is not
famine, it is similar to under nourishment and is related to poverty, it
exists mainly in poor countries.

b) Draught famine oriented

A major cause of hunger in aridity oriented African nations is

famine. Famine occurs frequently in arid and semi-arid regions and
was responsible for 2 million lives alone in 1985. Every year since
then, it has caused the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people.
Famines usually follow droughts which experts say can be
prevented. However, because of military campaigns, civil wars and
political unrest, the impact of weather related factors such as
drought are heightened. Following the famine in 1985, an African
country, Ethiopia experienced civil war for 11 years. Farmers had to
leave their farms, crops were destroyed and many peasants
starved.

c) Social insecurity oriented

Political instability which result in to social insecurity both in

combination affect on the availability of food in the region. Instability
in association with the ethnic rivalry particularly in underdeveloped
region not only generates the hurdle in availability of food, its
transport but many times food stock is purposely destroyed to
overcome the opposite ethnic group.

Check your progress

1. Why is food security a complex situation?
2. What is chronic food security?

 
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7.11 SOLUTIONS TO HUNGER – GLOBAL & INDIAN

SCENARIO

In the above sections we have seen that hunger although exists

universally, we need to find a comprehensive way outs for the
assurance of food.

Other possible solutions include the following

i) Urban farming :-

A revival of urban farming, with residents growing food on rooftops

and public lands. Such schemes already account for the half the
amount of vegetables eaten in cities like Havana, Cuba. In many
other areas of the world courtyard farming, roof top cultivation is
widely practiced, yet, these are the sporadic efforts and restricts to
developed regions.

ii) Boosting agricultural science and technology :-

Rising agricultural productivity drives economic growth. Improved

agricultural technology is a key component for boosting productivity.
This includes support to agricultural research and support to the
application of improved technologies and practices.

Yet another possibility to solving world hunger would be genetic

engineering, which promises to increases crop yields per unit area
of farmland and also enable crops to grow in conditions unsuitable
for normal crop varieties. High tech-farming methods such as
hydroponics and aero-ponics also point to possible solutions to
producing food in an ever more crowded and urban masses.

iii) Market opportunities :-

Developing domestic market and international trade opportunities.

Expanding farmers’ commercial opportunities is critical for ensuring
adequate returns. This includes improving domestic markets and
international trade opportunities. Beyond which development of
direct association between farmers and the consumers will give
more return to farmers, assure good quality commodities to
consumers and reduce the malpractices by trades.

iv) Improving policy frameworks :-

Only with sound policies in place can domestic and foreign private
investment and development assistance catalyze growth by helping

 
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people solve the problems that all too often keep them poor and
food-insecure.

v) Securing property rights and access to finance :-

Asset distribution shapes broad-based progress because it

determines the impact of the economic benefits. Asset distribution
also contributes to empowerment, hence participation and
ownership, by the larger proportion of the rural population who are
the generators of food.

vi) Protecting the vulnerable :-

Conflict prevention and resolution mechanisms and democracy and

governance based on principles of accountability and transparency
in public institutions and the rule of law are basic to reducing
vulnerability in the short term and eliminate conditions that create
vulnerability over the long term.

vii) Enhancing human capital :-

Better education and improved health contribute to greater

scientific capacity, more productive labour force in farming, and
better decision-makers over a range of economic and non-
economic activities. Regular technological update to farmers will not
only increase the yield but also enhance the bargaining power of
their produce.

viii) Enhancing the purchasing power :-

The problem of food security comes mainly from the slow growth of
purchasing power of the people in the rain-fed eco-systems. Efforts
must be made to help them by developing drought resistant seeds,
cost-effective dry-land farming techniques. A major challenge to
food security comes from dietary diversification of the poor. If cereal
pricing is left to the market forces, government playing the
facilitating role, land will be released from rice and wheat cultivation
to meet the growing demand for non-cereal crops such as oilseeds,
fruits and vegetables in accordance with diet diversification.

ix) Organic farming :-

Organic farming is one of the eco-friendly activity. In that process

the balance of nature is always maintained. Hence because of
higher yield, improved soil fertility and prevention of soil erosion,
minisation of the cost of pesticides and fertilizers the return are
more and also for the longer time and of good nutritive quality.

 
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x) Cooperative farming :-

This will increase the area of the farm because of short term or long
term consolidation process. That will induce large scale production
and thus procurement cost will reduce and food will be cheaper.

xi) PDS :-
The present food crisis is due to lack of proper distribution and the
trading system impeding free flow of food. Even increase in
agricultural productivity also one of the solution for this problem.
This should be based on integrating inputs and outputs-the supply
of high yielding varieties of seeds, fertilizers, and irrigation,
supported by credit alongside remunerative output prices.
At the movement the problem is the problem of distribution of
existing comfortable level of supply. However with increasing
population combined with low agricultural productivity. Therefore we
should do efforts to increase productivity and re-correct the
distribution problems.

xii) Halting farming to NA land :-

In the process of urbanization and industrialization large quantity of
agricultural land becomes non-agricultural in nature. Sometimes,
this is replaced by marginal land for farming. It reduces yield and
reduce the sustainability of the activity. Hence, use of agricultural
land for non-agricultural purpose should be discouraged.

Check your progress

1. List the measures to eliminate food scarcity?
2. How can industrialization lead to food scarcity?

7.12 FOOD SECURITY IN INDIA

India after the independence of 1947, was to face number of

hardships. Both economic as well as politico-strategic front. It was
the exploitative colony over about one and half century for the
British and thus on the fronts of resource development for her own
people very less efforts were contributed. On another hand,
epidemies, fluctuations of monsoon resulting into shortage of food
grains, poor availability of water particularly in off-season was
prominent. Moreover, we were to respond to three war-fares
immediately after the independence.

On this line the, the efforts taken by the scientists were highly
appreciable when around 1070s India achieved self-sufficiency in
terms of food. Yet, the ever-expanding population has posed
severe problem towards the availability of food in India

 
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In India food security can be viewed as four phased concept.

1. During 1940to /60s - food security was only considered in terms

of physical availability
2. 1970s - economic access to food was considered equally
important in which every individual must be able to purchase
food. This was through fair price shops.
3. 1980s - food security must be considered at the level of the
individual and not merely of the household as within a
household women and girl children tend to be undernourished
4. 1990s – it is recognized that that micronutrients in addition to
environmental hygiene and safe drinking water are important as
a part of food security.

Food security remained a major developmental objective in India

since the beginning of planning era. India achieved self-sufficiency
in food grains in the 1970’s and has sustained it since then. But the
achievement of food grain security at the national level did not
percolate down to households and the level of chronic food scarcity
is observed almost every year. Over 225 million Indians remain
chronically under nourished. In 2000-01, about half of the rural
children below five years of age suffered from malnutrition and 40%
of adults suffered from chronic energy deficiency. Such a high
volume waste of human resources should be a cause for concern. It
is not only a problem of today but the same population becomes the
pillar of economy over the period.

In recent time, there has been a shift in policy focus towards

household level food security and per capita food energy intake is
taken as a measure of food security. The government has been
implementing a wide range of nutrition intervention programmes for
achieving food security at the household and individual levels. The
Public Distribution System (PDS) supplies food items, such as food
grains, edible oil and sugar, at administered prices through fair
price shops. There have been a range of food-for-work and other
wage employment programmes. Another approach adopted by the
government is to target women and children directly; this includes
mid-day meal programme for school going children and
supplementary nutrition and external input liker folic acid tablets
programme for children and women.

According to National Sample Survey, per capita cereal

consumption has been declining since early 1970’s although a
significant rise in per capita cereal production. This can be
attributed to changes in consumer tastes, from food to non-food
items and, within food group, from coarse to fine cereals. The
decline in cereal consumption has been greater in rural areas,
where the improvement in rural infrastructure has made other food
and non-food items available to rural households.

 
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The reality is that the lower one-third of the population has not
shown any improvement in cereal and calorie intake in the rural as
well as urban areas despite a significant increase in their per capita
expenditure. Their per capita calorie intake is approximately 1600 to
1700 calories which is short of the required. Food distribution
within the family is also inequitable in the rural households and the
pre-school children get much less than their physiological needs as
compared to adult males and females. Even in case of female,
irrespective of their status of working as a laborer or the household
get less nutrients, both in terms of quality and quantity.
Micronutrient deficiency is common among people. Diets of about
80% of the rural population contain less than half of the normal
requirement of vitamins. The vitamins A deficiency leads to
preventable blindness. Iron deficiency is widely prevalent among
pregnant women. This results in a high incidence of low birth weight
children, which in turn contributes to malnutrition for a child and
anemia for mother.

The most important challenge is to increase the energy intake of

the bottom 30% of the population and at the same time facilitate
diet diversification to meet micronutrient deficiency. The food gap
can be met from the existing food grain stocks in the medium term
and by increasing their purchasing power in the long run through
increasing job opportunities. The micronutrient deficiency can be
rectified through supplementary nutrition and supply of fortified
food. There is also a need to improve the efficiency of the various
food schemes initiated by the government and make it more
available and free of corruption and urban bias.

The scenario of insecurity of food can be viewed through following

a. Clear objectives
Food security happens when all people at all times have access to
enough food that should affordable, safe and healthy, culturally
acceptable , meets specific dietary needs, obtained in a dignified
manner and produced in ways that are environmentally sound. We
must have the clear thought in this regard. Our country being one of
the largest in terms of geographical area, population biodiversity
and potentiality in terms of world super power should have clear
policy about the population and its health for the future.

b. Supply Side picture of Food Insecurity in India

According to the data published by the government of India and the
Food Corporation of India, total production of food grain was 230.78
million tons in 2007-08 and in recent year it is 229.85 million tones.
There is just 0.93 million tons of food grain production decreased
than earlier year. That rises the quarry whether just 0.004% decline
in can generate the severe situation? During 2007-08 to 2008-09
rice production increased from 96.69 to 99.37 million tones, wheat
production is declined from 78.57 to 77.63 million tones, coarse

 
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cereals production decreased from just 40.76 to 38.67 million

tones, cereals production is decreased from 216.02 to 215.67
million tones and production of pulses is near about stable it is
changed from 14.76 to 14.18 million tons in same year. Has it really
deteriorated food security?

In the same year population growth is near about hardly 1.10

percent and net growth of population may be 0.50 to 0.75 percent.
It was not a great burden on economy because alternative food
production like fish fruit, vegetables and milk increased during the
period.

c. Trade Practice Analysis of Food grain Market

Supply side analysis of the food market being stable; Indians are
facing a problem of low availability of food grain in the market and
its higher prices. This has happened in the retail market due to the
speculative practice of the traders. According to the supply
department of the government of Indian and the government of
Maharashtra most of traders are keeping illegal stock of food grain
and pulses. They are doing such for only profit motive and ignore
the morality. Hence, we can say that it is not only natural problem
but also manmade. In another word we can say that "Hunger
created by nature but supported by traders".

d. the complex hurdle

To bring situation to the normalcy, there is need of strong control
over the food market in India. In developing countries like India, the
root causes of food insecurity include, poverty, corruption, national
policies that do not promote equal access to food for all,
environmental degradation, barriers to trade, insufficient agricultural
development, population growth, low levels of education, social and
gender inequality, poor health status, cultural insensitivity, and
natural disasters. Implementation of proper mannered and accurate
public distribution system is a major solution to overcome the
problem of speculation by the private traders.

e. PDS in poor state.

Another important fact is the objectives of the Public Distribution
System-PDS are good but it was failed to accomplish that objective
due to the corruption. PDS is better way to tackle the problem of
food speculation by private traders. If the government will succeed
in the motive of PDS, the intensity of food insecurity problem will be
reduced in future. However, the cruel reality is that despite this
huge food production, a huge buffer stock and an extensive
network of PDS, millions of people are yet hungry and hunger death
is immediate mile stone for them. This scene is repetitive every
year at different places.

 
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Thus in spite of our adequate qualitative as well as qualitative

achievement in the field of agriculture we are yet to assure
ourselves about the food for tomorrow.

Check your progress

1. Understand the role of corruption in food scarcity?
2. How PDSs induce food assurance?
3. What is the role of traders in food scarcity?

7.13 LET US SUM UP

In this session we have learnt that global inequality of availability of

resources has resulted into unequal distribution of food. Hence,
there are food rich and food poor areas. This leads to shortage of
food in the world.

Even in India, there are enormous efforts to overcome the shortage

of food by way of adopted packages like green revolution and later
development of indigenous methods.

When this scarcity is not fulfilled it results in to hunger, starvation,

and malnutrition and under nutrition and finally the death.

To assure the availability of food we need food security and that

can be achieved by various method.

7.14 UNIT END EXERCISE

1. Explain food rich and food poor countries.
2. What is meant by food security?
3. Elaborate the measures to eliminate food scarcity.
4. Explain the stand of India on the front of food security.
5. Elaborate the role of general population on food security

 
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8
SECONDARY AND TERTIARY SECTORS

Unit Structure

8.0 Objectives

8.1 Bases of Spatial interaction.

8.1.1 Complementarity

8.1.2 Transferability

8.1.3. Intervening Opportunity

8.2 Importance Of Transportation In Trade & Commerce

8.3 Modes Of Transportation

8.4 Selection Of Different Modes Of Transportation

8.5 Communication

8.5.1 Types Of Telecommunication

8.5.2 Time & Space Convergence

8.6 Changing Nature Of Manufacturing And Services In Developed &

Developing Countries

8.7 Let Us Sum Up

8.8 Unit End Exercise

 
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8.0 OBJECTIVES

After going through this chapter you will be able to :

• Understand how industries and trade is expanding to achieve

regional growth.
• Know about expanding role of transportation.
• Understand the criterias applicable to select the mode of
transportation.
• Know about how the means of communication are increasing to
bring the world more closer.
• Understand the changing structure of manufacturing activities in
developed & developing countries

8.1 BASES OF SPATIAL INTERACTION

Earth’s Surface is not even. There are hilly areas as well as plain regions.
Population density is more in the plain regions. Similarly the products
which are required by the population are derived from different areas as
they are produced in different regions. Hence there are regions of
production or regions of supply and also the regions of consumption or
regions of demand. The interaction among these two types of regions is
known as spatial interaction.

Regions of Regions of
Spatial
Production Consumption
or
Or Supply

 
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Spatial interaction between any two places depends upon following three
major concepts.

1. Complementarity

2. Transferability

3. Intervening Opportunity

8.1.1 Complementarity

Natural has created Man as well as women.

When boy or girl become mature they are attracted to each other. They
have specific requirements which are fulfilled by each other hence they
are complementary to each other.

Similarly different regions have different requirements. If the requirements

of one region are fulfilled by the other region then these two regions are
termed as Complementary to each other. Mumbai is one of the major
metropolitan city of India & is called as “Economic Capital” of India.
Mumbai offers various types of jobs. People from surrounding region are
dependent on Mumbai for these jobs & Mumbai is dependent on these
people of the surrounding region. Hence we can say that Mumbai and its
surrounding regions are complementary to each other. Apples are
produced in Himachal Pradesh in large quantity. Hence it can be called as
region of surplus. Mumbai has large population & hence demand for
apple is more in Mumbai. This can be called as region of deficit. Hence
we can say that both these regions are complementary to each other.

8.1.2 Transferability

Transport & Communication networks help to transfer people, material or

goods and information from one place to another. Without proper
transferability interaction between two regions is difficult.

 
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8.1.3 Intervening Opportunity

Spatial interaction between two places is affected by the presence of

intervening opportunity. E.g. Interaction between Himachal Pradesh and
Mumbai with respect to the trade of apple can be adversely affected if
there is demand for apples from Delhi. As Delhi is more closer to
Himachal Pradesh than Mumbai & hence transportation cost will be less
if apples are transported from Himachal Pradesh to Delhi. So the trade
between Himachal Pradesh & Mumbai will decrease. In this example
“Delhi” is an example of intervening opportunity.

H.P. H.P.

Delhi

Mumbai

Mumbai

Role of Transport and Telecommunication Technology Time & Space

Convergence –

Transportation is an important link between producer and consumer in

any economic activity.

 
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Producer Transportation Consumer

Due to regional specialisation of economic activities and technological

development the role of transport has become more important. Earth’s
surface is not even, similarly the climatic conditions aslo vary from one
place to another and hence different types of products are produced in
different regions. e.g. Tea is grown mainly in the tropical belt due to worm
climatic conditions, but it is consumed more in U.K. & other European
countries.

Various modes of transportation are used in the world. The carrying

capacity and speed of these modes have increased over a period of time.
Due to bulk carrying capacity the transportation cost per unit has reduced
considerably. Hence all types of products even perishable products are
transported over longer distance to the various parts of the world.

‘Transport’ is considered as one of the indicator of development of a

country. More developed countries have dense network of transport than
the less developed countries.

Check your Progress :-

1. Explain the concept of spatial interaction.

2. Match the Column.

A B

1) Mumbai – Himachal Pradesh 1) Transferability

2) Mumbai – Delhi, 2) Spatial interaction

Himachal Pradesh

 
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3) Use of railway for trade 3) Complementarity’s

4) Intervening opportunity

3. Write short notes on

a) Complementarity’s

b) Intervening opportunity

8.2 IMPORTANCE OF TRANSPORTATION IN TRADE

& COMMERCE

1. Transportation promotes trade

Trade both wholesale and retail - requires transportation, as it is

connecting link between producer to wholesaler and from wholesaler to
retailer & finally to consumer.

T T

Producer Wholesaler Retailer

T = Transportation Consumer

 
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Efficient means of transportation promotes trade & development of the

region

2. Regional Specialization

It is more economical to produce products suitable to any particular

regions. e.g. Tea being plantation crops as grown in warm tropical belt.
Transportation helps in distribution of products in the world & hence
promotes regional specialization.

3. Employment opportunities

Various modes of transportation requires large amount of skilled and

unskilled man power & hence development of transportation leads to
increase in employment opportunity in transportation & other related
fields.

4. Large scale production

It is always economical to have large scale production of any product. But

at the same time it is also essential to distribute these products at proper
destination within specific time limit. This has become possible due to
large scale development of transportation network.

5. Mobility of labour

Migration of skilled & unskilled labour has increased tremendously due to

development in transportation. e.g. Many nurses and skilled workers in
the Gulf countries are from Kerala state in India. Similarly the silicon
valley has greater percentage of Indians.

 
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6. Time Utility

Transportation time is very crucial for perishable products & these can be
transported to markets in fresh condition from far off places due to
efficient means of transportation.

Time factor is also very crucial at the time of disasters, emergency or

wars when the supply of meterial within the specific time is very important.

7. Place Utility

Multi - National corporations (MNC) require huge space to start their

processing plants in the underdeveloped or developing countries. These
corporations select remote barren areas for eraction of their processing
plant, as such areas are vacant & are cheaper. Development of
transportation network in this region changes the place utility & it
becomes more valuable.

Check your Progress :-

1. Explain any four (4) importance of transport in the development of

trade & Commerce.

2. Give reasons for

a) Why it is said that transport adds place & time utility.

b) Importance of transport is increasing in today’s world.

 
  160

8.3 MODES OF TRANSPORTATION

Roads and waterways were only means of transportation in the past.

Today we have roads to air transport, thanks to the technological
developments in the field of transportation. Various modes of
transportation are as follows.

A. Land Transportation

1. Road Transportation

2. Rail Transportation

3. Pipeline Transportation

B. Water Transportation

1. Ocean ship routes.

2. Inland waterways.

C. Air Transportation

8.4 SELECTION OF DIFFERENT MODES OF

TRANSPORTATION

Each type of Transportation has some advantages and disadvantages.

Depending on the type of product, its nature, its cost etc. particular type of
mode of transportation is selected. Following points are considered for the
selection of different modes of transportation.

 
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1. Transportation Cost

Transportation cost per unit is less for ocean Transportation & it is very
high for air Transportation. Generally non-perishable, bulky commodities
are Transported through ocean ship routes.

Rail transport is used to carry raw material, bulky products, non-

perishable goods within the country. Road and air Transportation is used
to carry raw material, bulky products, non-perishable goods within the
country. Road and air transport is used to carry perishable, and more
valuable goods. Pipeline is used for the transportation of water, oil,
natural gas etc.

2. Speed

Speed is a crucial factor in the transportation of perishable or more

important products. Road transportation is faster than rail transportation
for shorter distance as it provides door to door service. Rail transportation
is faster than road transportation for longer distances. Perishable
products like flowers are transported world over by air Transport.

3. Convenience

It is one of the important factor while selecting the mode of transport. e.g.
river in Russia are frozen during winter season and hence are not useful
as means of transportation. In such cases land Transport or air transport
becomes more convenient.

4. Climatic Variation

Air of water transport are more affected by climatic variation e.g. snowfall,
fog, extreme low lemp. etc.

 
  162

Land transportation i.e. road - is also affected by the development of

dense fog, snow fall or heavy rain fall.

5. Risk in Transportation

Precious goods are Transported by air, Breakable goods are Transported

with proper care generally through road Transportation.

6. Accessibility

Accessibility is less in hilly & Mountainous areas. Human labour or

animals are used in such areas for Transportation. Air Transport is also
used in such areas in the case of emergency.

Check your Progress :-

1. How transport cost decides the selection of mode of transport?

2. Which different factors has to be considered to select the

mode of transportation.

8.5 COMMUNICATION

Communication means exchange of information through message. This

can be done through speaking, writing or by other methods.
Communication can be classified as (1) personal communication - e.g.
Post, Telegraph, Telephone or mobile and (2) Mass Communication -
e.g. Newspapers, Magazines, Radio, T.V. and satellite communication.

Communication is an essential part of own life. Modern trade &

development is impossible without effective communication. Satellites
help worldwide broadcasting of radio and T.V. Signals. All barriers /
Constraints of time and space are eliminated by effective means of
communication. Revolution in tele - communication has given rise to new

 
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terms like- ‘Global Village’ ‘Information Super Highway’ and ‘Third

transport revolution’ etc.

8.5.1 Types of Telecommunication

1. Postal services

Postal service in India developed during the colonial period. Prior to that
birds or messengers were used by the kings for sending messages.

2. Telegraph Service

Speedy communication started due to development of Telegraph.

3. Telex

Telex is teleprinter machine used by the postal department. Typed

message can be transferred quickly with the help of telex.

4. Telephone

It is very important in personal communication. Distance barrier between

two persons is removed instantly in telephonic communication.

5. Fax

Fax Machine is a printer attached to telephone. It reproduces a copy of

any information send through fax machine from other place. Exact copy of
important documents can be send to other places through ‘Fax’.

6. Mobile Phones

 
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Mobile phones or cell phones have become an essential & integral part of
our body. It is used by different purposes. It is very effective means of
personal communication.

7. Conference Phone

These phones can be used for conducting conferences where with the
help of telephone 2 or more people can have conversation. Lot of time is
saved and hence these are useful for small business meetings.

8. Radio

Radio plays an important role in our social & personal life. It is very useful
& effective means of mass communication. Warnings about weather
condition, cyclones, heavy rainfall, sea condition etc. can be given
instantly through radio. It is used for creating mass awareness during
wars, emergencies, epidemics, riots etc. Commercial advertisements on
radio promote sells of various products.

9. Television

Mass communication became more effective, attractive due to

development of television. It plays same role as radio but being visual it is
far more effective & interesting in providing information e.g. chanels like
National Geographic, Animal planet provide information about various
parts of the world. Tele - learning has become possible due to T.V. It is a
popular medium for advertising.

10. Video – conference

It is also called as tele conference where people can talk and at the same
time see each other as if they are in front of them. It is possible to show
sample products, maps, graphs or charts in this type of conference & it
saves lot of time & money of the people.

 
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11. Satellite Communication

India is one of the leading country in satellite communication. There are

various types of satellite Geo-stationary Satellites send information of the
same region as they rotate along with the earth at the same speed.

Satellite play a revolutionary role in the field of communication.

12. Computers

The present age is called as age of computers. They are used

everywhere in homes, shops, offices, schools, colleges, banks, railway
stations, airports etc. They store and transfer data more accurately &
effectively.

a) E-mail - or Electronic - Mail is service provided through computer. One

can contact any person in the world or send message to him or her
through E-mail. It plays an important role in business world as well as
personal communication.

b) Internet - This is also an additional service which we get through

computers. Internet provide us detail information about any topic which is
required by us. Internet is also very popular in the commercial world for
advertising & sell of products.

Check your Progress :-

1. Explain the types of communication.

2. How computer technology is helping to bring world more close.

3. Explain the concept of global village.

 
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8.5.2 Time & Space convergence

Due to the development of various means of effective communication the

earth has become smaller as people in far off regions can contact each
other irrespective of the physical barriers & political boundaries hence the
entire world, has become a Global village. Due to modern means of
communication.

8.6 CHANGING NATURE OF MANUFACTURING AND

SERVICES IN DEVELOPED & DEVELOPING
COUNTRIES.

Countries in Europe, N. America, Japan & Australia are known as

developed countries. Due to industrial & scientific revolution in these
countries mass production of various products started in these countries.
Colonisation done by the European countries provided raw materials to
their industries at the homeland. These countries could sell their products
in their colonies and they got the advantage of headstart, so these
countries prospered more than the other countries. Manufacturing was
not much developed in the underdeveloped & developing countries.

Today situation is just reversed. Due to rapid technical change, scientific

& technological development in the developing countries, shrinking
economic distance, new forms of industrial organisation & widespread
policy liberalisation have promoted large scale industrialisation in the
developing as well as underdeveloped countries.

Multi - National corporations (MNC) dominate industries in the world.

Though most of the MNC have their origin in Europe an countries, they
prefer to develop manufacturing industries in the developing countries
due to liberisation policy of the government. As government provides
lands, water, electricity, labour and other facilities to the MNC in
developing Countries.

Labour cost, land cost, material cost is more in developed countries.

Environmental restrictions are more harsh in the developed countries &

 
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hence MNC’s prefer developing & underdeveloped countries for their

industrial expansion.

Hazardous industries are shifted from developed countries to developing

& underdeveloped countries. MNC’s shift old out dated machinery, old
technology to these countries so that they can run the industry at
minimum cost and can earn maximum profit. Various types of household
products like T.V. Washing machines, computers, cars are produced in
developing & newly industrialised countries.

8.7 LET US SUM UP

In present world the need for transport and communication is increasing.

Hence different modes of transportation and the means of communication
are even advancing. In todays globalised world transportation and
communication has brought the countries. of the world very close to each
other. Hence these two has became the basic indicators of economic
development in developed & developing world.

8.8 UNIT END EXERCISE

1. With suitable diagrams, explain the term spational interaction & its
concepts.

2. Discuss in detail, the importance of transportation in expanding

commerce & trade.

3. Explain in detail, the changes taking place in the types of

communication.

4. Differentiate the nature of manufacturing & services in developed

and developing countries.

 
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9
TOURISM

Unit Structure

9.0 Objective

9.1 Tourism - Introduction

9.2 New types of tourism.

9.2.1 Eco Tourism

9.2.2 Agro - Tourism

9.2.3 Medical – Tourism

9.2.4 Adventure Tourism

9.2.5 Sports Tourism

9.2.6 Sex Tourism

9.3 Challenges Before India

9.4 ECONOMIC IMPACT OF TOURISM

9.5 SOCIO - CULTURAL IMPACT OF TOURISM

9.5.1 Positive Impact

9.5.2 Negative Impact

9.6 ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF TOURISM

9.7 Let Us Sum Up

9.8 Unit End Exercise

 
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9.0 Objective

• Understand the increasing need for tourism activity.

• Know about the factors to generate tourism world wide.
• To discuss the changes taking place from traditional tourism to
new forms of tourism.
• To understand the positive & negative sides of Tourism with special
examples from India.

9.1 TOURISM – INTRODUCTION

Tourism is one of the important economic activity. Traders traveled from

one place to another in the past; but this travel was a part of their
business. Due to the development of industries in Europe, people worked
in the unhealthy, congested atmosphere & hence there was a need for
rest & relaxation. So tourism developed in 18th century in U.K. The
concept of mass tourism developed due to development of transport &
communication. Today tourism has become an important business & it
also helps countries to earn valuable foreign exchange & to help economy
of that country.

Tourism definition :-

1. “Tourism is the totality of the relationship & phenomenon arising

from the places where they normally live & work & their activities during
the stay at these destinations & it includes movement for all purposes as
well as day visits or excursions.”

- Hunzlker & Krapt (Swis Professors, 1942)

2. “Tourism is the sum total of the operation, mainly of an economic

nature, which directly relates to the entry, stay & movement of foreigners
inside & outside a certain country or region.”

- Hermann V. Schullnd (Austrian economist)

 
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Common Characteristics of Tourism

1. Tourism is a temporary phenomenon

2. There is no time limit for tourism, it may be of a day visit or a stay of

two months also.

3. Tourist is a stranger to tourist place.

4. It is a movement outside home environment.

Factors affecting the development of tourism

Popular sites of tourism normally have following factors.

1. Places of natural beauty e.g. Beaches, Hills, Forest etc.

2. Places of Historical importance.

3. Places having cultural heritage.

4. Accessibility

5. Good weather condition.

6. Shopping facilities.

7. Health related aspects

8. Accommodation facility

9. Entertainment facilities.

10. Transportation facilities.

Check your Progress

1. Define the term Tourism

2. Why the tourism activity is increasing in present world.
3. Discuss the characteristics of tourism.
4. Explain in detail, which factors India Posses to develop
tourism.

 
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9.2 NEW TYPES OF TOURISM

Tourism is a rapidly developing tertiary economic activity, which has

become essential as it supports economy of many countries. The concept
of tourism has changed over the period of time. Many new ideas,
specialisation etc. are introduced in tourism which is termed as New
Tourism e.g. Eco tourism, Agro tourism, Medical Tourism Adventure
tourism, sports tourism & Sex tourism etc.

Environmental protection has become essential to sustain the activity of

tourism & hence more emphasis is given on protection of the environment
in New tourism.

9.2.1 Eco tourism

Eco-tourism is tourism & recreation that is both nature based and

sustainable.

International ecotourism society defines eco-tourism as “responsible

travel to natural areas that conserve the environment and sustains the
well being of local people.”

Protection & conservation of environment depends upon the behaviour of

the tourists.

Guidelines for tourists for the Protection of Environment

1. Do not distroy plants, trees.

2. Maintain silence. Avoid noise pollution.

3. Do not disturb animals, birds, fish or even insects.

4. Keep sources of water clean

5. Avoid Camp-Fire i.e. burning of wood.

 
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6. Dispose off the biodegradable & non- biodegradable wastes at proper

places.

Ecotourism helps local people by supporting their economy &

environment.

Ecotourism protects biodiversity & helps in the conservation of the

environment. Ecotourism helps to percolate idea of environmental
protection through environmental education.

Green hotels i.e. hotels which take care of the environment & create less
pollution, conserve resources are known as Green hotels or ‘Ecotels’ e.g.
‘Orchid’ ‘hotel’ of Shri Vitthal Kamat at Mumbai.

Check your Progress

1. Fill in the Following.

a) Tourism is ____________ activity

b) Eco tourism is of ____________.

c) Eco tourism is ____________ & ____________ based.

d) Local people gets benefit to earn income & protect their

environment through ____________.

2. Write note on Eco tourism with its guide lines.

3. Write are the benifits of Eco-tourism.

9.2.2 Agro - Tourism

Tourism related to agriculture is termed as Agro-Tourism. This is a new

concept & certainly helps to promote sustainable development of tourism
& protection of environment.

 
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The idea of agro-tourism is to organise tour in agricultural areas to

observe growth of plants, agricultural operations & to enjoy life in the rural
areas. Due to rapid urbanisation & industrialisation, people migrate to
urban areas. Population of major metropolitan, cities like Mumbai is ever
increasing. Life in congested urban area has become more miserable.
Agro-tourism provides welcome change by providing natural, unpolluted &
calm environment to the tourist & hence there is lot of scope to develop
agro-tourism near metropolitan cities like Mumbai.

Agro-tourism is popular in the countries like Italy, Spain, Australia etc. In

India it is practiced in the tea & coffee plantation areas.

In Maharashtra farmers of Baramati formed, a group called ‘Maval Agro’

to develop agro-tourism near sahyadri hill ranges. This includes
waterfalls, forest, temples, forts, boating & rural food.

India has tremendous protential for the development of agro - tourism.

Check your progress

1. What is Agro tourism? Why it is getting importance in present

day?

2. Why India has a wide scope for Agro tourism?

Explain with examples.

9.2.3 Medical – Tourism

It is a combination of medical treatment & tourism Medical charges are

very high in the more developed counties but are less in less developed
or developing countries & hence people from developed countries travel
to developing country like India to take advantage of low-cost health care
& super specialised hospitals. Kerala is famous for Ayurvedic treatment.
Yoga has become popular in the western countries. Kerla, Goa,
Maharashtra (Aurangabad, Mumbai, Vipshana Centre at Igatpuri, Urali
Kanchan etc.) are important centres of medical tourism in India.

 
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9.2.4 Adventure tourism

It includes travel to remote, exotic areas, dense forests, rock climbing,

mountaineering, water rafting, visit to underground caves, river crossing,
gliding etc. India has tremendous physical variation & hence there is lot of
scope for adventure tourism in India.

9.2.5 Sports tourism

Due to olympic games sports tourism is becoming an important economic

activity. Cricket, football are the popular games which attract tourist from
all over the world.

9.2.6 Sex tourism

Sex is a basic instinct of man. South-East Asian, Counties like Thailand

have become famous for sex tourism. Young children both boys & girls
are exploited due to sex tourism. It is difficult to control these & other illigal
activities related to sex tourism.

Check your Progress

1. What is medical tourism? Give some examples from your

general reading.

2. Why adventure tourism is getting importance?

4. How sere tourism is harmful to the society?

 
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9.3 CHALLENGES BEFORE INDIA

Mughal emporar had described Kashmir in India, as heaven on the earth.

Indeed India is a unique country having tremendous physical of cultural
variations. Highest mountain in the world is to the north of India. This
region receives snowfall & enjoys temperate climatic condition. Southern
part of India is in the tropical belt & has higher temperature. Similarly East
India receives highest rainfall in the world while Thar desert is to the west
of India. India is a diffusion of various cultures & religions & we are proud
of own cultural heritage.

Hence India has tremendous, potential for the development of tourism.

Unfortunately the share of India in world tourism is very less. There are
many reason’s for this situation. Such as -

1) In Indian culture our guest (i.e. Tourist) is considered as god (Athithi

Deo Bhava) but rarely tourist get this treatment? Generally tourist is
considered as ‘Bakara’ and is exploited by taxi drivers, traders & other
people related to tourist industry. It is necessary to change this attitude.

2) Lack of cleanliness is another problem found at many places, Even the

important tourist places are sporiled by the tourist & their dirty habits.

3) ‘Terrorism’ has created problems in many parts of India & hence

spoiled the image of India. This certainly affects adversely on the
development of tourism in India.

These are some of the challenges before us it is our duty to try our level
best to overcome these problems.

Check your Progress

 
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1. Match the Column.

A B

1. Karshmir 1. Gujrat, Rajasthan.

2. Himalian ranges 2. Cultural heritage.

3. Thar desert 3. Heaven on earth.

4. Cherapunji 4. Snowfall & beautiful scenary.

5. India 5. Highest rainfall in the world.

2. Which challenges India is facing in the growth of Tourism?

3. “Can India able to develop it’s tourism to get economic befit?”

Express your views.

9.4 ECONOMIC IMPACT OF TOURISM

a) Positive impact

1) Employment - Tourism provides many job opportunities to unskilled as

well as skilled personals. These employments are in transport, hotel, food
industry & craft industry.

2) Invisible export - Tourism is considered as invisible export as it

provides valuable foreign exchange to the host country. When tourist visit
any country they spend money on food, travel, purchase of various items
& accommodation facilities. This money percolates into society and hence
indirectly government gets its benefit as invisible export.

3) Generation of national income - Development of tourism promotes

investment in various sectors like infrastractural facilities, construction of
accommodation facilities.

 
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4) Development of region - Economically backward regions can develop

due to tourist activities. It also enhances the standard of living of the local
population.

b) Negative impact -

1) Increase in imports - Tourists demand products of international

standards of reputed companies. Underdeveloped countries are
compelled to import these products as the local products are of low quality
or are not preferred by the tourists.

2) Seasonal job opportunities - Certain hill stations attract tourists in a

particular season & hence the local people get seasonal job opportunities.

3) Rise in the prices of the products - Tourists are prepared to pay

higher prices for the products & hence generally products are costly at the
hill stations. This creates problems for the local people.

9.5 SOCIO - CULTURAL IMPACT OF TOURISM

9.5.1 Positive impact –

1) Incentive to Local craft & culture - Due to tourist activities traditional /

local craft is revived . Local craftsmen develop new ideas to attract
tourists.

2) Preservation of historic Monuments - Certain building of historical

importance are treated as cultural heritage or Heritage buildings are
protected and preserved as national treasure.

3) World Peace - When tourist visit other countries they understand their
culture & they clear their mis - Concepts about that culture. This promotes
international understanding & hence can bring peace in the world.

 
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9.5.2 Negative impact –

1) Spread of AIDS - Sex tourism enhances spread of AIDS through
prostitution. There is no cure for AIDS & hence this is a major adverse
effect of tourism.

2) Cultural shock - When tourist form advanced countries visit

underdeveloped countries, they wear modern or fashionable dresses &
this can be a cultural shock to the people from traditional culture. e.g.
Hippies on the beaches of Goa were the foreign tourist & they moved on
the beach without any type of dress on their body.

3) Increase in the crimes - Tourism also promotes various types of

Crime, Tourists are robbed by the local people or some times local people
are exploited by the tourists.

9.6 ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT OF TOURISM

a) Positive impact –

1) Development of Agro - Tourism - Many Potential spots are

developed as agro-tourism sites e.g. strawberry tourism developed near
panchgani - Mahabaleshwar hill area.

2) Development of santuaries - Forested areas are developed into

santuaries, to attract tourist & to develop tourism. More attention is given
to such forested areas by the government authorities. Forests are
reserved or protected.

b) Negative impacts -

1) Loss of biodiversity - Increase in tourist activities leads to the

development of infrastructural facilities, accomodation facilities etc. &
unfortunately this affects the vegetation of that area which ultimately leads
to the loss of biodiversity.

2) Increase in pollution - Air, water, land & noise pollution increases due
to Tourism.

 
  179

3) Environmental degradation

Various types of products & resources, food items etc. required by tourists
are exploited from the environment and hence development of tourism
generally leads to the environmental degradation.

9.7 Let us Sum up

Tourism is an ever growing economic activity world wide. Through this

activity the developing countries can able to maintain their deficit in the
balance of payment. This is possible only when the Tourism activity will
be carried out in environmental friendly manner. And by using maximum
local resources like labour. Tourism general large scare employment to
local people By concentrating on positive side & overcoming the negative
then impacts of tourism, if all the developing & underdeveloped countries
will tap their potentialities then Tourism activity will be boon for achieving
faster economic growth.

9.8 Unit End Exercise

1. Explain the concept of tourism with it’s characterstics.

2. Discuss in detail the new forms of tourism.

3. What are the challonges India is facing in the growth of tourism.

4. Explain positive & Negetive impact to tourism.

 
  180

10
NATURAL DISASTERS

Unit Structure

10.0 Objective

10.1 Concept Of Natural & Man Made Disasters.

10.2 Natural Disasters

10.2.1 Consequences Of The Earthquake

10.2.2 Earthquake Safety Rules

10.2.3 Tsunami

10.2.4 Tsunami Safety Rules

10.3 Cyclone

10.4 Floods

10.5 Droughts

10.6 Let Us Sum Up

10.7 Unit End Exercise

 
  181

10.0 OBJECTIVE

• Understand the basic difference between Natural

and Man made Disasters.
• To know the cause & some concepts associated with
Natural Disasters.
• Study the consequences of Natural Disasters & Pre
cautionary means are to be adopted.

10.1 CONCEPT OF DISASTER NATURAL & MAN-

MADE

‘Disaster’ is a situation which develops due to natural or man-made

activities. Generally there is a large scale loss of property or human life. It
is a grave occurrence having severe impact on the society. There is large
scale disruption of infrastructure. Disasters have socio - economic,
psychological, political & cultural impact on the society. Disasters are
classified as.

a) Natural Disasters - These develop due to natural causes e.g.

earthquake, tsunami, cyclone, flood & drought. Heat waves, landslides,
forest fire etc. are considered as minor natural disasters.

b) Man - made Disasters - These develop due to human error or failure

of system operated by man.

Man-made disasters can be sociological or technological. E.g. Criminal

acts, riots, stampeds, war etc. are the examples of sociological man made
disasters. While transport accidents, industrial accidents, fire, oil spills or

 
  182

leakage of poisonous gas are the examples of technological man-made

disasters.

Check your Progress

1. Fill in the gaps

a) Disasters develops due to ____________ & ____________

activities.

b) Tsunami is an example of ____________ disaster.

c) Bhopal gas tragedy is an excellent example of ____________

disaster.

d) Recent gas leackage from prot Trust is ____________

2. Explain the concept of “Disaster” and its typs.

10.2 NATURAL DISASTERS

Earthquake & Tsunami -

Earth + quake (Shake) is a sudden movement of the earth’s surface. This

is generally caused by the movement of the earth’s tectonic plates. I.e.
Earth’s surface is composed of many tectonic plants. These are not
stable. The gradual movement of these plants in different directions builds
up stress & beyond a certain limit it produces sudden jerk of the surface.

The violent vibrations developed on the earth’s surface are called as

earthquake.

Focus of the earthquake is the place in the interior of earth where the
earthquake originates. This is a place from which the earth quake waves
spread in different directions.

 
  183

Epicenter

Focus

Epicenter - It is a point on the earth’s surface immediately above the

focus.

Earthquake waves are called as seismic waves. These are of different

types.

a) Primary waves - These are the initial waves, they travel in straight line
& are able to pass through the liquid core of the earth.

b) Secondary waves - These are ‘S’ shaped & hence their movement is
more complicated than the primary waves. These waves are absorbed in
the liquid core of the earth.

 
  184

c) Surface waves or love waves - These are more complicated &

hence are not able to travel much. These are found near equicentre.
These waves cause maximum damage.

The magnitude of earthquake is measured in Richter scale. ‘Seismograph’

is used for this measurement.

10.2.1 Consequences of the earthquake

a) Constructive consequences -

1) Due to movement of earth’s crust, underground mineral resources are

brought to the surface & hence new mining areas develop.

2) Rivers change their courses & provide fertile agricultural land.

3) Waterfalls & springs develop at new places.

4) Submergence of coastal areas is responsible for the development of

ports & harbours.

5) New lakes are formed

6) Hot springs emerge at new locations.

Destructive consequences -

1) Earthquake causes landslides in the hilly areas.

2) Rivers change their courses & hence fertile & populated areas are
submerged.

3) River courses are blocked, leading to floods in the near by areas.

4) Buildings, bridges, Collapse & there is damage to property on a large

scale.

5) Transport & Communication lines are disturbed / destroyed.

6) Many people die or become handicapped.

7) ‘Tsunami’ develop due to earthquake & are responsible for the heavy
loss of property.

 
  185

10.2.2 Earthquake safety rules.

During the earthquake -

1) Don’t panic. The motion is frightening but, unless it shakes something

down on top of you, it is harmless. Keep calm & aware of the situation.

2) If it catches you indoor, stay indoors. Take cover under a desk, table,
bench, or in doorways, halls & against inside walls. Stay away from
glass.

3) Don’t use candles, matches or other open flames either during or after
the tremor. Douse all fires.

4) If the earthquake catches you outside, move away from buildings &
utility wires. Once in open ground, stay there until the shaking stops.

5) Don’t run through or near buildings. The greatest danger from falling
debris is just outside doorways & close to outer walls.

6) If you are in a moving car, stop as quickly as possible & stay inside the
car.

After the shaking -

1) Check your utilities, but do not turn them on. Earthquake may have
cracked water, gas & electrical conduits.

2) If you smell gas, open windows & shut off the main valve.

3) If water mains are damaged, shut off the supply at the main valve.

 
  186

4) If electrical wiring is shorting out, close the switch at the main meter
box.

5) If electrical wiring is shorting out, close the switch at the main meter
box.

6) Turn on your radio or television to get the latest emergency

bulletions.

7) Stay off the telephone except to report an emergency.

8) Don't go sight - seeing.

9) Stay out of severely damaged buildings. Aftershocks can shake them

down.

Check your progress

1. Fill in the gaps.

a) Earthquake is generally cause by movement of earth’s

____________.

b) The place where actually earthquake originates is known as

____________.

c) The point above the focus is known as ____________.

d) Seismic waves are nothing but ____________.

e) Primary waves of earthquake travel in ____________ through

____________ core.

f) The unit of measuring earthquake is ____________ Discuss.

2. Discuss some Indian examples of earthquake.

3. What are the constructive & destructive consequences of earthquake.

 
  187

10.2.3 Tsunami -

Tsunami is a Japanese word which means harbour wave (Tsu- harbour &
nami= waves)

These are huge destructive ocean waves generated by earthquake or

other major movement of the earth’s crust. When the earthquake occurs
at the bottom of ocean / sea, tremendous amount of energy is released.
As the depth of ocean water is more the energy spreads in different
directions. When the Tsunami wave approaches coast the depth of water
becomes less hence the energy within Tsunami wave is utilised to
increase height of this wave which increases to 100 ft or 35 m.

Tsunami waves travel at the speed of 150 kms. per hour Large scale
destruction occurs at the coastal areas affected by Tsunami.

In 1883 an eruption of volcano at krakatao produced Tsunami which killed

about 36,000 people.

In 2004 nearly 2.5 lakh people in India, Sri Lanka, Sumatra & Other
Indonesian islands died due to Tsunami.

10.2.4 Tsunami Safety Rules -

1) A strong earthquake felt in a low-lying coastal area is a natural warning

of possible, immediate danger. Keep calm & move to higher ground; away
from the coast.

2) Tsunami is not a single wave, but a series of waves. Stay out of danger
areas until an ‘all-clear’ is issued by competent authority.

3) Approaching tsunamis are sometimes heralded by a noticeable rise or

fall of coastal water. This is nature’s Tsunami warning & should be
heeded.

4) A small Tsunami at one beach can be a giant few kilometers away.

Don’t let the modest size of one make you lose respect for all.

 
  188

5) Never go down to the beach to watch for a tsunami. When you can see
the wave you are too close ot escape it.

6) Stay tuned to your radio or television station during a tsunami

emergency.

Check your Progress

1. Match the column :

A B

1. Earth quake generated waves 1. 100 ft or 35 m.

2. The general height of Tsunami waves 2. 150 kms / hour.

3. The speed of Tsunami waves 3. Tsunami

2. Which safety rules has to be adopted during Tsunami.

10.3 CYCLONE

Cyclones is a low-pressure system in the atmosphere. It develops near to

the earth’s surface at the lower part of the atmosphere. When the earth’s
surface is heated, air near to the earth’s surface is also heated. It
expands, it’s density becomes less & hence it raises in the upward
direction. In order to fill this partial vaccum caused due to displacement of
air, air from the surrounding region is dragged at the low pressure area
formed in the centre. This wind, which is moving towards the centre is
deflected due to rotation of the earth. Hence the direction of wind in the
cyclone is anti-clockwise in the northern hemisphere & clockwise in the
southern hemisphere. The velocity of wind in cyclone is about 40-50 kms
per hour.

 
  189

L
988 mb
992 mb
990 mb
994 mb
996 mb
Low
998 mb

pressure 1000 mb

Cyclone

The Centre of the cyclone is termed as eye of the cyclone.

Cyclones cause lot of destruction along the coastal area. i.e. loss of
human life, destruction of buildings, infrastructure, plants, crops etc.

Cyclones are known by different names in different parts of the world.

a) Willy willy in Austrclia

b) Harricanes in USA

c) Typhoons in china, Japan

d) Cyclones in India & S.E. Asia.

 
  190

Most of the tropical cyclones in the Bay of Benqal & Arabian Sea develop
during post monsoon (Oct. Nov.) Season & pre-monsoon (April-May)
Season.

Check your Progress

1. How cyclones are forming?

10.4 FLOODS

Floods generally occur near to the river valleys, Where in the lower
course of river the larger area is filled with water due to increase in the
amount of river water. This can cause due to excessive rainfall or
snowfall. Due to rapid melting of snow, this melt water is added to the
river. Due to landslide the course of river is blocked & hence the river
water spreads in the near by area causing flood.

Floods also develop in the urban areas. The urban area has tar or cement
roads & hence rain water does not percolate into ground, Solid waste
products are accumulated in the drainage system in urban area, they
block the drainage & hence rain water accumulates on the road.

Floods are also caused due to deforestation & soil erosion.

Effects of flood

1) Destruction of homes, bridges & other property

2) Loss of human life & other living organisms.

3) Loss of crops.

4) Economy of the area / country is affected.

5) Marshy areas develop due to flood.

6) Contamination of fresh drinking water.

 
  191

7) Spread of epidemics like Cholera Maleria & other diseases related to

infected water.

Check your Progress

1. Where & how the flood occure.

2. What are the effects of floods.

10.5 DROUGHTS

It is a condition of dryness due to low rainfall or lack of rainfall over long

period of time. Drought is normally associated with semi-arid or arid
areas, but it can occur in other areas if the monsoonal rainfall is delayed.

Droughts affect human population as water is one of the prime need of

man. It affects crops, industries & economy of the region. Droughts are
common in arid & semi-arid area (Sahel) of Africa & Asia.

Causes of drought -

1) Delayed rainfall - especially monsoonal rainfall in Asian countries

produce drought condition.

2) Deforestation -

Trees help in conservation & storage of water. Removal of trees create

serious environmental problem.

3) Over exploitation of water - Much of our fresh water is below the

earth’s surface. i.e. Underground water. Farmers over-exploit this
underground water using electric pumps & hence the water table moves
to greater depth creating shortage of water.

4) Overgrazing - Vegetation is lost due to overgrazing & the area

becomes barren. Such condition leads to drought condition.

 
  192

10.6 Let Us Sum Up

When any situation develops suddenly & creates heavy natural & human
loss is always considered as disaster. It is been commonly seen that
natural disasters are occurring due to some natural causes, but in todays
world the natural disasters are indirectly connected to human activities. As
population is increasing the human impact on natural setting of earth is
leading increase in the occurrence of natural disasters. Earthquake,
Tqunami, floods, droughts, cyclones are creating large scale distruction
about the natural disasters, can able to reduce the loss of human life upto
certain extent.

10.7 Unit End Exercise :

1. What is Disaster? How it is Classified.

2. Explain in detail the causes & consequences.

3. Explain the consequences of following -

a) Tsunami

b) Droughts

c) Cyclones

4. “Every year North east India receives flood” discuss.

 
  193

10
NATURAL DISASTERS

Unit Structure

10.0 Objective

10.1 Concept Of Natural & Man Made Disasters.

10.2 Natural Disasters

10.2.1 Consequences Of The Earthquake

10.2.2 Earthquake Safety Rules

10.2.3 Tsunami

10.2.4 Tsunami Safety Rules

10.3 Cyclone

10.4 Floods

10.5 Droughts

10.6 Let Us Sum Up

10.7 Unit End Exercise

 
  194

10.0 OBJECTIVE

• Understand the basic difference between Natural

and Man made Disasters.
• To know the cause & some concepts associated with
Natural Disasters.
• Study the consequences of Natural Disasters & Pre
cautionary means are to be adopted.

10.1 CONCEPT OF DISASTER NATURAL & MAN-

MADE

‘Disaster’ is a situation which develops due to natural or man-made

activities. Generally there is a large scale loss of property or human life. It
is a grave occurrence having severe impact on the society. There is large
scale disruption of infrastructure. Disasters have socio - economic,
psychological, political & cultural impact on the society. Disasters are
classified as.

a) Natural Disasters - These develop due to natural causes e.g.

earthquake, tsunami, cyclone, flood & drought. Heat waves, landslides,
forest fire etc. are considered as minor natural disasters.

b) Man - made Disasters - These develop due to human error or failure

of system operated by man.

Man-made disasters can be sociological or technological. E.g. Criminal

acts, riots, stampeds, war etc. are the examples of sociological man made
disasters. While transport accidents, industrial accidents, fire, oil spills or
leakage of poisonous gas are the examples of technological man-made
disasters.

 
  195

Check your Progress

1. Fill in the gaps

a) Disasters develops due to ____________ & ____________

activities.

b) Tsunami is an example of ____________ disaster.

c) Bhopal gas tragedy is an excellent example of ____________

disaster.

d) Recent gas leackage from prot Trust is ____________

2. Explain the concept of “Disaster” and its typs.

10.2 NATURAL DISASTERS

Earthquake & Tsunami -

Earth + quake (Shake) is a sudden movement of the earth’s surface. This

is generally caused by the movement of the earth’s tectonic plates. I.e.
Earth’s surface is composed of many tectonic plants. These are not
stable. The gradual movement of these plants in different directions builds
up stress & beyond a certain limit it produces sudden jerk of the surface.

The violent vibrations developed on the earth’s surface are called as

earthquake.

Focus of the earthquake is the place in the interior of earth where the
earthquake originates. This is a place from which the earth quake waves
spread in different directions.

 
  196

Epicenter

Focus

Epicenter - It is a point on the earth’s surface immediately above the

focus.

Earthquake waves are called as seismic waves. These are of different

types.

a) Primary waves - These are the initial waves, they travel in straight line
& are able to pass through the liquid core of the earth.

b) Secondary waves - These are ‘S’ shaped & hence their movement is
more complicated than the primary waves. These waves are absorbed in
the liquid core of the earth.

c) Surface waves or love waves - These are more complicated &

hence are not able to travel much. These are found near equicentre.
These waves cause maximum damage.

 
  197

The magnitude of earthquake is measured in Richter scale. ‘Seismograph’

is used for this measurement.

10.2.1 Consequences of the earthquake

a) Constructive consequences -

1) Due to movement of earth’s crust, underground mineral resources are

brought to the surface & hence new mining areas develop.

2) Rivers change their courses & provide fertile agricultural land.

3) Waterfalls & springs develop at new places.

4) Submergence of coastal areas is responsible for the development of

ports & harbours.

5) New lakes are formed

6) Hot springs emerge at new locations.

Destructive consequences -

1) Earthquake causes landslides in the hilly areas.

2) Rivers change their courses & hence fertile & populated areas are
submerged.

3) River courses are blocked, leading to floods in the near by areas.

4) Buildings, bridges, Collapse & there is damage to property on a large

scale.

5) Transport & Communication lines are disturbed / destroyed.

6) Many people die or become handicapped.

7) ‘Tsunami’ develop due to earthquake & are responsible for the heavy
loss of property.

 
  198

10.2.2 Earthquake safety rules.

During the earthquake -

1) Don’t panic. The motion is frightening but, unless it shakes something

down on top of you, it is harmless. Keep calm & aware of the situation.

2) If it catches you indoor, stay indoors. Take cover under a desk, table,
bench, or in doorways, halls & against inside walls. Stay away from
glass.

3) Don’t use candles, matches or other open flames either during or after
the tremor. Douse all fires.

4) If the earthquake catches you outside, move away from buildings &
utility wires. Once in open ground, stay there until the shaking stops.

5) Don’t run through or near buildings. The greatest danger from falling
debris is just outside doorways & close to outer walls.

6) If you are in a moving car, stop as quickly as possible & stay inside the
car.

After the shaking -

1) Check your utilities, but do not turn them on. Earthquake may have
cracked water, gas & electrical conduits.

2) If you smell gas, open windows & shut off the main valve.

3) If water mains are damaged, shut off the supply at the main valve.

4) If electrical wiring is shorting out, close the switch at the main meter
box.

 
  199

5) If electrical wiring is shorting out, close the switch at the main meter
box.

6) Turn on your radio or television to get the latest emergency

bulletions.

7) Stay off the telephone except to report an emergency.

8) Don't go sight - seeing.

9) Stay out of severely damaged buildings. Aftershocks can shake them

down.

Check your progress

1. Fill in the gaps.

a) Earthquake is generally cause by movement of earth’s

____________.

b) The place where actually earthquake originates is known as

____________.

c) The point above the focus is known as ____________.

d) Seismic waves are nothing but ____________.

e) Primary waves of earthquake travel in ____________ through

____________ core.

f) The unit of measuring earthquake is ____________ Discuss.

2. Discuss some Indian examples of earthquake.

3. What are the constructive & destructive consequences of

earthquake.

 
  200

10.2.3 Tsunami -

Tsunami is a Japanese word which means harbour wave (Tsu- harbour &
nami= waves)

These are huge destructive ocean waves generated by earthquake or

other major movement of the earth’s crust. When the earthquake occurs
at the bottom of ocean / sea, tremendous amount of energy is released.
As the depth of ocean water is more the energy spreads in different
directions. When the Tsunami wave approaches coast the depth of water
becomes less hence the energy within Tsunami wave is utilised to
increase height of this wave which increases to 100 ft or 35 m.

Tsunami waves travel at the speed of 150 kms. per hour Large scale
destruction occurs at the coastal areas affected by Tsunami.

In 1883 an eruption of volcano at krakatao produced Tsunami which killed

about 36,000 people.

In 2004 nearly 2.5 lakh people in India, Sri Lanka, Sumatra & Other
Indonesian islands died due to Tsunami.

10.2.4 Tsunami Safety Rules -

1) A strong earthquake felt in a low-lying coastal area is a natural warning

of possible, immediate danger. Keep calm & move to higher ground; away
from the coast.

2) Tsunami is not a single wave, but a series of waves. Stay out of danger
areas until an ‘all-clear’ is issued by competent authority.

3) Approaching tsunamis are sometimes heralded by a noticeable rise or

fall of coastal water. This is nature’s Tsunami warning & should be
heeded.

 
  201

4) A small Tsunami at one beach can be a giant few kilometers away.

Don’t let the modest size of one make you lose respect for all.

5) Never go down to the beach to watch for a tsunami. When you can see
the wave you are too close ot escape it.

6) Stay tuned to your radio or television station during a tsunami

emergency.

Check your Progress

3. Match the column :

A B

1. Earth quake generated waves 1. 100 ft or 35 m.

2. The general height of Tsunami waves 2. 150 kms / hour.

3. The speed of Tsunami waves 3. Tsunami

4. Which safety rules has to be adopted during Tsunami.

10.3 CYCLONE

Cyclones is a low-pressure system in the atmosphere. It develops near to

the earth’s surface at the lower part of the atmosphere. When the earth’s
surface is heated, air near to the earth’s surface is also heated. It
expands, it’s density becomes less & hence it raises in the upward
direction. In order to fill this partial vaccum caused due to displacement of
air, air from the surrounding region is dragged at the low pressure area
formed in the centre. This wind, which is moving towards the centre is
deflected due to rotation of the earth. Hence the direction of wind in the
cyclone is anti-clockwise in the northern hemisphere & clockwise in the
southern hemisphere. The velocity of wind in cyclone is about 40-50 kms
per hour.

 
  202

L
988 mb
992 mb
990 mb
994 mb
996 mb
Low
998 mb

pressure 1000 mb

Cyclone

The Centre of the cyclone is termed as eye of the cyclone.

Cyclones cause lot of destruction along the coastal area. i.e. loss of
human life, destruction of buildings, infrastructure, plants, crops etc.

Cyclones are known by different names in different parts of the world.

a) Willy willy in Austrclia

b) Harricanes in USA

c) Typhoons in china, Japan

 
  203

d) Cyclones in India & S.E. Asia.

Most of the tropical cyclones in the Bay of Benqal & Arabian Sea develop
during post monsoon (Oct. Nov.) Season & pre-monsoon (April-May)
Season.

Check your Progress

2. How cyclones are forming?

10.4 FLOODS

Floods generally occur near to the river valleys, Where in the lower
course of river the larger area is filled with water due to increase in the
amount of river water. This can cause due to excessive rainfall or
snowfall. Due to rapid melting of snow, this melt water is added to the
river. Due to landslide the course of river is blocked & hence the river
water spreads in the near by area causing flood.

Floods also develop in the urban areas. The urban area has tar or cement
roads & hence rain water does not percolate into ground, Solid waste
products are accumulated in the drainage system in urban area, they
block the drainage & hence rain water accumulates on the road.

Floods are also caused due to deforestation & soil erosion.

Effects of flood

1) Destruction of homes, bridges & other property

2) Loss of human life & other living organisms.

3) Loss of crops.

4) Economy of the area / country is affected.

5) Marshy areas develop due to flood.

 
  204

6) Contamination of fresh drinking water.

7) Spread of epidemics like Cholera Maleria & other diseases related to

infected water.

Check your Progress

4. Where & how the flood occure.

5. What are the effects of floods.

10.5 DROUGHTS

It is a condition of dryness due to low rainfall or lack of rainfall over long

period of time. Drought is normally associated with semi-arid or arid
areas, but it can occur in other areas if the monsoonal rainfall is delayed.

Droughts affect human population as water is one of the prime need of

man. It affects crops, industries & economy of the region. Droughts are
common in arid & semi-arid area (Sahel) of Africa & Asia.

Causes of drought -

1) Delayed rainfall - especially monsoonal rainfall in Asian countries

produce drought condition.

2) Deforestation -

Trees help in conservation & storage of water. Removal of trees create

serious environmental problem.

3) Over exploitation of water - Much of our fresh water is below the

earth’s surface. i.e. Underground water. Farmers over-exploit this
underground water using electric pumps & hence the water table moves
to greater depth creating shortage of water.

4) Overgrazing - Vegetation is lost due to overgrazing & the area

becomes barren. Such condition leads to drought condition.

 
  205

10.6 Let Us Sum Up

When any situation develops suddenly & creates heavy natural & human
loss is always considered as disaster. It is been commonly seen that
natural disasters are occurring due to some natural causes, but in todays
world the natural disasters are indirectly connected to human activities. As
population is increasing the human impact on natural setting of earth is
leading increase in the occurrence of natural disasters. Earthquake,
Tqunami, floods, droughts, cyclones are creating large scale distruction
about the natural disasters, can able to reduce the loss of human life upto
certain extent.

10.7 Unit End Exercise :

1. What is Disaster? How it is Classified.

2. Explain in detail the causes & consequences.

3. Explain the consequences of following -

a) Tsunami

b) Droughts

c) Cyclones

4. “Every year North east India receives flood” discuss.

 
  206

11
MAN MADE DISASTERS

Unit Structure :-

11.0 Objective

11.1 Man Made Disasters

11.1.1 Civil Unrest & Terrorism Causes

11.1.2 Nuclear Accidents

11.1.3 Oil Spill And Leakage

11.1.4 Industrial Accidents

11.2 Disaster Management

11.2.1 Disaster Management Cycle

11.2.2 Pre-Disaster Management

11.2.3 Management during The Disaster

11.2.4 Post Disaster Management

11.3 Role Of Technology In Disaster Management 

11.3.1 GIS

11.3.2 Remote Sensing

11.4 Let Us Sum Up

11.5 Unit End Exercise

 
  207

11.0 OBJECTIVE

• Understand the meaning & magnitude of man-made disaster.

• To know the pre & post disaster management techniques.
• Use of advance techniques to manage disasters.
• Summary
• Unit End Exercise.

11.1. MAN-MADE DISASTERS

A Disaster for which man is responsible is termed as man-made disaster.

There are various types of man-made disasters. Some of them are as
follows.

1. Civil unrest & Terrorism

2. Explosions

3. Fires

4. Nuclear disaster

5. Industrial accidents

6. Maritime disasters

7. Railway disasters

8. Air crashes

9. Space Disasters.

11.1.1 Civil Unrest & Terrorism Causes

1. When people support a particular ideology they try to kill persons or

groups opposing their ideology or they feel that killing people of other
ideology is a religious deed.

 
  208

2. Civil unrest can occur if the people are suppressed or deprived of their
rights.

3. Unemployment & misleading statements of the leaders are also

causes of civil unrest.

11.2 CONSEQUENCES

1. Large scale loss of human Life

2. Massive destruction of public property.

3. Wastage of resources & pollution.

4. Development of bitter feeling among two groups.

5. Psychological shock.

Selected Major Civil unrests

Year Event Place

189 B.C. Insurrections Egypt

1770 Boston Massacre Boston
1895-1922 Armenian Massacres Armenia Turkey
1900 Boxer Rebellion China
1919 Amritsar Massacre India
1984 Riot between Sikhs & Hindus Amritsar - India
1989 Massacre in Tiananmen Square China
1993 Hindu Musliom riots Bombay - India 

 
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Check your Progress :-

1. With examples explain the meaning of the term man-made

disaster?

2. Which types of problems are generated due to civil unrest &

terrorism in society?

3. What are the reasons to generate civil unrest?

11.1.2 Nuclear Accidents

Invention of atomic reactions provided man a tremendous source of

energy. Nuclear energy can be used for destructive purporses like Atom
bombs. – which was dropped on Hiroshima during the second world war.
But at the same time it can be used for the constructive purposed like
production of electricity. Nuclear energy has tremendous capacity as it is
estimated that only one ton of uranicum produces energy equivalent to
five million tones of coal.

Causes of Nuclear Accidents

The field of nuclear energy is still in infant stage and hence most of the
accidents in this field occur due to human negligence. i.e. reactor
accidents. Atomic reactor controlles the fission process but if there is
leakage then large quantities of readioactive material is released & it
spreads over a large area.

Smetimes the radioactive material is stolen & it is transported without

taking much care. In such cases the radiation spreads & affects human
life.

 
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Consequences of Nuclear Accidents

Radiation released by the radioactive materials like uranium, thorium &

radium is absorbed thorium & radium is absorbed by the plants, animals
& people through food chain, & it’s effect remains for many years, from
one generation to another. Depending on intensity of radiation people die
on the spot or they suffer due to diseases like cancer, thyroid, cataract,
various physical & mental disorders – anemia, loss of hair, skin diseases,
reproductive failure & abnormalities, mental retardness etc. e.g. chernobill
disaster.

Check Your Progress :-

1. Fill in the gaps :-

a) The first nuclear bomb dropped at ______ & ______ in Japan.

b) Nuclear accidents generate large amount of ______ material.
c) Nuclear energy is used basically for production of nuclear
______ & ______.
d) Nuclear energy is product by 2 methods ______ & ______ .

2. What are the causes & consequerees of nuclear accidents.

3. With reference to case study give answer the following :-

a) Chernobyi nuclear power plant is at __________.
b) On April 26, 1986 this disaster happed due to ____________.
c) Nearly ______ Channels ripped off.
d) How many people have been shifted ______ & ______ died.
e) People suffering from Thyroid are ______.
11.1.3 OIL SPILL AND LEAKAGE

The density of oil is less than the density of water and hence oil flots on
water Oil is a bulky commodity and it is either transported through pipe
lines, trains or tankers on land & huge oil supertanker ships carry oil in
bulk quantity from the areas of production to the areas of demand or
consumption.

Causes of Oil Spills

1. Accidents of supertankers, which carry oil from one country to

another.

2. Leakage or accidents of oil tankers or tains.

 
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3. Leakage during loading or unloading of oil.

4. Servicing, cleaning or reparing of ships in dry dock.

5. Leakage from various engines & machines using oil.

6. Leakage from underground tanks.

Consequences of Oil Spill

1) Hazardous to marine organisms – As oil spreads on the surface of

water the supply of oxygen to marine organisms is affected –
many fish die, Corals & other marine organisms are also affected.
2) It disturbs the marine elosystem.
3) It reduces demand for seafood in the market.
4) Oil spilled on land percolates through soil & enters under-ground
water. It pollutes rivers & underground supply of water.

Check your Progress :-

1. What are the sources of oil spills or leakages.

2. How oil spilling creates threats to water bodies.

11.1.4 Industrial Accidents

Development in science & technology was responsible for the industrial

revolution. The industrial processes are becoming more complicated and
more hazardous due to modern scientific & technological developments in
the industrial sectors – mainly in chemical, transportation, agricultural &
mining industries.

Causes of Industrial Accidents

1. Unsafe working conditions:In order to reduce the production cost & to

earn more profit many workers are compelled to work in unsafe conditions
& compact work places.

2. Untrained & unskilled workers doing skill jobs as they are not aware of
safety conditions & hazardous chemicals, machine operations etc. they
become responsible for the accidents.

3. Illigal storage of hazardous products in unsafe conditions.

 
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4. Natural forces like cyclone, earthquake can also create serious

problems in the industries leading to accidents.

Consequences of Industrial Accidents

1. Loss of human life & other organisms.

2. Pollution of the environment.

3. Adverse effect on eco system.

4. Loss of Property.

Check your Progress :-

1. What is industrial man made disaster.

2. What are the cause of Industrial disaster.

3. What are the consequence of Industrial accidents? Suggest

some solutions to overcome it.

Chernobyl Nnclear Disaster (Case Strudy)

The worst recorded nuclear accident in history, that of the Chernobyl

nuclear power plant in Pripyat, USSR on April 26, 1986, was the result of
human error in conducting a test of the system.

On April 26th, 1986 at 1.23 a.m. the nuclear reactor blew. Three
explosions tore through the reactor, blowing off its top, sending its 1000
ton steel cover plate rocketing into the air & ripping off the tops of all
1,661 channels,

Which were attached to the cover plate & contained nuclear fuel. Flames
Continued to shoot over 1000 ft. into the air. This continued for days &
nights. The effects of radiation of this nuclear accident were observed in
Swden, Poland, & other European countries. More than 94,000 people
were shifted from the affected area. More than. 300 people died, about
1,50,000 people are suftering from some type of thyroid illness due to this
accident.

 
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11.2 DISASTER MANAGEMENT

The impact of disaster can be minimized with the help of ‘Disaster

Management’ This helps in reducing severity of the disaster & trains
people to face the disaster, to predict disasters as well as rehabilitation of
people.

11.2.1 DISASTER MANAGEMENT CYCLE

Disaster management cycle has three major sub-units.

1. Pre-disaster management

2. Management during the disaster

3. Post – disaster Management

11.2.2 Pre-Disaster Management

It includes forecasting of disaster, the arrangements for relief rescue, use

of strategies to reduce the extent of disaster.

‘Prevention is better than cure’ is the basis of pre-disaster management

activities.

Information about the various types of disasters & the ways of reducing
their impacts is given through various communication mediums as
Newspapers, Radio, T.V., Internet etc. Training of people helps to reduce
the impact of disasters.

 
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11.2.3 Management During the Disaster

When disaster occurs in any area, its information is given to other areas
through communication system. Urgent medical treatment is required,
Resque & relief teams start their operations. The success of disaster
management at this stage depends upon trained & experienced persons,
effective communication & transport system.

It is necessary to provide alternate temporary arrangement for the people

who have lost their houses. Similarly they also require food, water and
medical aid if necessary.

11.2.4 Post Disaster Management

It includes preventive measures like afforestation, construction of wall or

canal, removal of rocks, mud or loose material on the slope, development
of settlements etc.

Many houses & buildings collapse during disaster & hence rehabilitation
programmes becomes necessary.

Normally government & non-government organization take initiative in

such programmes.

 
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11.3 ROLE OF TECHNOLOGY IN DISASTER

MANAGEMENT 

The impact of disaster can be reduced due to use of technology at

various levels. e.g. advancements in tele-communication, information
technology, remote sensing, GIS etc. are very useful. Developments in
transportation construction technology, medicine are very wonderful &
play a crucial role in disaster management

11.3.1 GIS

GIS or Geographical Information system is a Computer programme

(software) which is very useful in storage of various types of data & using
that date for scientific management, decision making etc.

GIS provides quick & effective solutions to various problems which

emerge due to disasters.

GIS can be used to study the cause of disasters & is useful tool for
Government or Non Government organizations working in the area of
disaster managements.

11.3.2 Remote Sensing

India is one of the leading countries in the field of satellite communication

& remote sensing. The data of various features found on the surface of
the earth is captured by satellite & is send to the base station where it is
analysed & interpreted by the experts.

GIS & remote sensing techniques are very useful in the management of
various disasters likes floods, drought, earthquakes & landslides.

 
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11.4 LET US SUM UP :

At present the man-made disasters are equally increasing as the natural

disasters. Certain man made disasters can even able to divide the human
minds which is equally haronful for the growth of a country. The man-
made disasters can be brought under control. The recent railway
accidents at Thane, near Mumbai (Collapsing of water pipe line on train)
& at W-Bangal (between uttarbarga Express & Vananchal Express.)
These railway disasters would have been avoided with proper
management and use of advance technology.

11.5 UNIT END EXERCISE :

1. What is man-made disaster? Explain any two of them in detail.

2. How does the disaster management cycle workers.

3. What is the role of technology in minimizing & reducing the

disasters.

 
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12
ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS
AND ISSUES
Unit Structure
12.0 Objectives
12.1 Introduction
12.2 What is environmental problem?
12.3 Why environmental problems today
12.4 What is environmental concern?
12.5 Major environmental concerns today
12.6 Major environmental problems in the world their causes &
impacts
12.6.1 Global Warming And Climate Change
12.6.2 Depletion Of Ozone Layer
12.6.3 Pollution
12.6.4 Deforestation
12.6.5 Extinction Of Species
12.6.6 Loss Of Natural Resources
12.6.7 Population Explosion
12.6.8 Genetically Modified Foods
12.6.9 Movement Of Hazardous Waste
12.6.10 Loss Of Biodiversity
12.6.11 Acid Rain
12.6.12 Crz Violation
12.6.13 Disposal Of Solid Waste
12.7 India Environmental Status Their Causes & Impacts
12.7.1 Deforestation
12.7.2 Pollution
12.7.3 Desertification
12.8 Let Us Sum Up
12.9 Unit End Exercise

12.0 OBJECTIVES

After going through this unit you will be:

• Understanding what is environmental problem and how is it

different from environmental concern.
• Understanding major environmental problems in the world and
in our country and its causation.

 
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12.1 INTRODUCTION
The are many environmental issues of concern in the whole world
such as overgrazing, deforestation, air pollution, water pollution,
and threats to endangered species. In this unit we will focus on
Environmental concerns and issues.

12.2 WHAT IS ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEM ?

Environment, what is the space occupied by number of objects and
the aspects we observe in our surrounding. That is what we have
learnt in the first unit of the syllabus. In simple words it is the nature
with which we deal with for our whole life. Our technologies,
practice of scientific advancements are always on the dais of the
nature.

But with an ever increasing pace, the human population, of the so

called civilised nations, has put material things above the beauty,
magnificence and survival of the Earth. We have linked our
civilization with the material gains; with the process of proving the
supremacy of human being over nature. And that too, without
understanding the processes in the nature.

Water has been polluted and trees cut down in an endless lust for
timber or new farming land. Precious topsoil that took thousands of
years to make, blows away in the wind and is replaced with bad
experiences and the materials to which mankind has never have
been exposed. The clean air has been filled with dirt, filth and
danger. Plants and animals that have evolved in patient process
have been subjected to genetic engineering often across the
species simply in the name of profit. In short, mankind had sought
total control over the environment and with potentially disastrous
results.

Already there are many signs of the horrors that lie ahead if we do
not do something soon to stop this destructive trend. Landslides
and floods caused by dramatic changes in the topography of the
land; awful viruses such as Ebola and AIDS emerge from the rain
forests, where they had dwelt harmless to mankind for so long, as
the forests are obliterated. Those that can stop this seem not to
listen and nor to care because to do so would mean an end to the
carefree, money-grubbing life they seem to like so much. The
politicians and corporate executives would have to forego their
wasteful and scintillating lifestyles and they are not about to let that
happen.

 
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We are rapidly approaching the point from where probably there is

no return. Soon, there will be real danger of an oxygen deficit as the
internal combustion engine uses more and more of the life
sustaining gas and production falls as an increasing number of
trees disappear. Water, vital for life, will be more and more polluted
and undrinkable; new diseases will launch upon society and more
people will be stricken with the horrific illness that come as a direct
result of the over use of chemicals in agriculture, food production
and in so many industrial processes.

Each and every one of us must take a degree of responsibility for

the threat under which we now live. We are the consumer and it is
to satisfy our insatiable appetites that many of these things occur.
Of course, some of us do try to live a lifestyle that pays heed to the
environment but, often thanks to the marketing men, too many take
the easy way and help to exacerbate an already critical situation.

What can the individual do to stop and, ultimately reverse the

trend? Surprisingly, you might think, quite a lot and without making
too much additional effort. Most of the extra effort will go into
stopping to think before making buying decisions or before throwing
things away.

What we have seen so far do we think it a problem and if so, this is

the environmental problem. Our nature is the deposit we have
receive from our earlier generation which we are supposed to
handover to next generation with some good addition. But in reality
we are handing over the rotten stuff to our next generations. Are not
we deceiving them? It we feel this is a problem then it is
environmental problem.

Of the present 6.5+ billion people, over 800 million are

malnourished, yet we have farmed all the most productive soils and
caused one third of croplands to be eroded away. At least one
billion people depend on fish for their main source of animal protein,
yet their fisheries are mostly declining through over-exploitation. We
consume or otherwise appropriate two fifths of all net plant growth,
yet there will soon be half as many people again, many of them
demanding more plant products than today.

Check Your Progress

1. List down the environmental problems in the world?

2. Why we have to think of protecting our own environment?
3. How layman can able to protect his own environment?
4. How environmental problem affects human health?

 
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12.3 WHY ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS TODAY

This is a long-termed asked question that why environmental
problems are more discusses today only where those in the past
were? For this question valid the answer/s are to be understood in
the logical manner.

Environmental problems are stated with humanity. A presence of

nature was even before humanity. But the nature was considered
as superior to the mankind. Particularly after industrial revolution
which is coincidently the start of technology, was the breaking stage
of dichotomy between the man and nature for superiority. Since
then, the one way tussle between man & nature resulting into rapid
loss to nature and slow but stable kickback from nature has stated.

CAUSES FOR ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS

a) Population the main cause

In the process of expanding environmental problems the root
cause, not to be forgotten is the population. Increasing population
put forth the demand for variety of materials from the nature. The
over exploitation of minerals, fertility for growing food grains, wood
and fodder, water, animals are all oriented to human demand.
Malthus has already postulated that the way population increases
nature’s material does not. However, that was and even today is
over-sighted resulting into rapid demand for materials and services.
Surprisingly man has not understood that generation of human
resources which is a part of conversion of human population are not
in pace with the increasing demand. Shortage of human resources
in the area of education, law & order, defense, research, health and
technology suggest this.

b) Poor understanding about the intricacy of natural processes

In the process of exploiting nature we have forgotten to understand
composition and intricacy of nature. And in case of understanding
the learning were not put to practice. We know that deforestation is
bad but as we have not stopped the deforestation along the hill
slopes nature has given us late but stable blow of landslides. That
has happened in different areas of konkan as well as hillocks in
Mumbai city claiming hundreds of lives in every rainy season.

c) Communication & transportation increase access to

opportunities
The technology has provided us means of communication and
transportation. We are using those for economic growth; but there
are less efforts to deploy it for understanding & practice of nature. A
farmer communicate with market to understand the price and
procurements of the crop but never make an attempt to deploy

 
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communication means to know the nature-friendly and innovative

methods of maintaining soil fertility or water retentivity of soil. This
is not necessarily a story of semi-literate rural area but the
technocratic and trechno-savy urban residents are using and losing
more time and electric power on life-style chatting than
understanding the innovative method of electricity saving in routine
life.

d) Misuse of technology in nature’s exploitation

Use of technology is inevitable in interaction with nature. This is one
of the indicators of civilization. But technology has to be cost-
effective. Cost are considered as only economic in nature, other
costs like psychological, geographical, climatological are neglected
in the process of decision making & interaction with the nature. Our
myopic approach towards nature is responsible for the aggravation
of problems. When machine provides easier way to cut a tree,
number of machines is deployed to cut hundreds of trees a day. Its
long-term, staggered impact we come to know in terms of decline in
water table and uncertain rainfall only after five to ten years. Or, the
salinisation of soil takes three to five years of incompetent
agricultural process but the rehabilitation of the same soil required
twelve to fifteen year of duration.

Hence deployment of pragmatic, rational but the optimum

technology at least here onwards may detain further deterioration of
nature.

e) Improper economic practices

Economic activities are the collective impact of human response to
nature and his needs and methodical thinking. However, in last two
hundreds of years his thinking and decision making was not proved
rational. Emphasis on economic growth neglecting nature, stress
on progress than development led to cut throat competition and
minimization of only economic cost. Strategic and political groups,
using technology as a weapon to capture resources in different
areas of the under different versions of imperialism led to
exploitation of materials, naturals, and even own brotherhood of
mankind.

f) More accessibility more loss

With the advances of technology, we have seen that
communication and transportation advanced. Satellite technology
has enhanced the human vision beneath the surface also. This led
to more accessibility to nature. When satellite indicate high density
shawls of fish in deep ocean, marine technology does not waste
time in searching for the fish and increasing the time and fuel cost.
That captures all fish mercilessly. No chance for few to run away to
reproduce for the next and further years. Fish draught is not the
guest to us ; we have invited it. So is the case of minerals. Thin
mineral beds are not acceptable because satellite can detect thick

 
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saving survey cost of money and time and yield us more minerals.

Check Your Progress

1. Explain the causes for environmental problems (At least 3)
2. Fill in the gaps :-
a) Environmental problems began with ________.
b) There is dichotomy between ________ & ________ for
Superiority.
c) ________ Postulated the way of population increase
d) Konkan Railway has created ________ problems, which is
a frequent phenomina during monsoon season.
e) Technology has to be ________ other wise it is add to
environmental problems.
f) Use of technology is the indicator of ________.

3. If technology is misused, then which cost man has to pay?

12.4 WHAT IS ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERN?

Environmental concern is the awareness of a person about the
environmental problems, his or her support attempts for solving
them or the level of his or her willingness for contributing such
attempts. We have seen in various sessions that environmental
problem are generated in different areas of the world. Those may
differ in intensity, area of coverage and the temporal impact.
However, the loss to nature, sufferings to mankind continue to
happen in a similar manner in all area of the world.

These problems are previewed by some people or visionaries in the

society. They react in the form of awareness, writes-up or the
agitations. General people may not understand for the same. After
experiencing the response of the nature to human activities, people
accept that perhaps in future, it will be a problem to the humanity
(you may remember the problem of flood aggravated by the plastic
bags in Mumbai or the people died by landslide due to
deforestation). Only after the painful experience people accept the
path suggested by the visionaries. Yet, the level of a person’s
environmental concern has a direct and strong influence on
recycling, energy saving, environmentally friendly product purchase
or travel type selections

These concerns possess the capacity to generate the problems.

None of the problem of the environment has developed over-night.
Environment being a closed system take very long time to react
because of its carrying capacity. When carrying capacity is over-
exceed slowly generate into a problem.

 
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12.5 MAJOR ENVIRONMENTAL CONCERNS TODAY

Following are some of the important concerns in the world.
* Rapid use of renewable resources resulting into demand for
fuels.
* Reduction of bio-diversity, decline in forest areas due to
expansion of agriculture and settlements
* Escalating use of energy due to luxurious life and
consumerism.
* Use of unplanned urban infrastructure particularly in coastal
areas resulting into stress on fragile coastal ecosystem
* Global warming due to high level of emission of green house
gases.
* Use of chemicals for economic development leading to health
risks, environmental contamination, problem of disposal of the
chemical materials.
* Degradation of resources, acidification, climatic variability, loss
of biomass & bio-productivity
* Increase in equality which is a goal for every economy but
unfortunately responsible for expanding consumerism.
* Growth of poverty and hunger in spite of increase in agricultural
growth.
* Unsustainable development.

Check Your Progress

1. Explain the term Environmental concern.
2. What are the environmental Concerns today.

12.6 MAJOR ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS IN THE

WORLD THEIR CAUSES & IMPACTS
As we head into a every new year, the main news is that we face
an enormous problems for which one major stake holder we ensure
is nature. We call it environmental crisis. The worse news is that
that sphere is growing bigger at a rate faster than earlier. The worst
news of all is that if we continue with our present lifestyles,
economies, etc., we shall not recover from the debacle for at least
50 years, and more like 500 years in the case of global warming.
The better news is that the final disaster has not overtaken us yet.
The best news is that it need never overtake us at all, provided we
move smartly and immediately to change our lifestyles, our
economies, etc. The supremely best news is that if we shift to
another track for our lifestyles, our economies, etc., we shall surely
find we prefer it to our present track. In many ways it will be more
enjoyable, less hectic, more fulfilling all round--and it will often put
money into our pockets. However, it needs a little, optimum and
collective thinking; moreover a rational consistency in our activities
and interactions with the nature.

 
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In absence or the partial practice of which so far certain responses

to our activities from nature arises which can be seen as below.

12.6.1 Global Warming and Climate Change

Global warming is one of the major issues we are being faced with.
The term signifies an increase in the atmospheric temperature near
the earth’s surface, which is caused by various reasons. Scientists
are of the opinion that a rise in the carbon dioxide levels will further
aggravate the situation. The greenhouse effect causes the earth’s
heat to be trapped in the atmosphere, which results in the increase
in temperature. Global warming has thus caused a change in the
climate of the earth, causing temperatures to rise. This in turn has
an effect on various species dependant on the basic laws of nature.
A change in the same makes survival a difficult issue. A warmer
earth also causes changes in the rainfall patterns and thus affects
humans, plants and animals as well.

At different platforms environmentalists expressed their concerns

that if the Gangotri glacier which provides water to river Ganges in
the perennial form, kept melting at its current rate, the river Ganges
would soon dry up. River Ganges is the holy river of India, which
has served as a lifeline for centuries for millions of people on its
banks. Rivers have played an important role in the survival of
mankind, and many of them are fed by glaciers. Global warming
which refers to the increase in the temperatures of the earth due to
release of greenhouse gases like carbon dioxide and methane from
industries and vehicles. This phenomenon is causing the glaciers to
melt at an alarming rate. Not just the Gangotri, but even the polar
ice caps are melting at a faster rate than they can form. The result
is increase in the sea level, and it poses a danger of submergence
of the low lying areas. Some of the areas that may go under the sea
if the sea levels kept increasing include Bangladesh, parts of Africa
and even major cities like London and New York. The island state
like Maldives has already given the SOS to the united nation about
the concern because it has lost some of its land due to the problem.

12.6.2 Depletion of Ozone Layer

The stratosphere comprises the layer of ozone at the height of
approximately 16 to 22 miles that protects us from the harmful
ultraviolet (UV) rays of the sun. Exposure to these layers causes
skin cancer and cataracts. However, the ozone layer filters out the
dangerous UV rays from sunlight as it enters the earth's
atmosphere. The cholofluorocarbons (CFCs) that are man-made
chemicals are released in the atmosphere through CFC containing
aerosols, refrigeration equipment, foam and as byproducts of
certain industrial processes. As these chemicals are released, they
rise up into the atmosphere and break down the ozone molecules
that form the ozone layer. This leads to conversion of Ozone to

 
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oxygen and due to decline in ozone density ozone hole is formed.

Ozone hole in the Antarctic stratosphere is causing great concern
to environmentalists all over the world. Not only are the depleting
ozone layer harmful to human beings, but the UV rays can destroy
variety of organic life on the earth surface. Minor animals and plants
like bacteria & fungi will disappear from the earth surface because
of high temperature. Researchers are even predicting that excess
level of UV rays could lead to the death of the phytoplanktons that
are an important component of the food web of the oceans.

12.6.3 Pollution
Industrialization is one of the mile-stone in human progress and
civilisation. However, with industries have come a host of toxic
gases that are being released into the atmosphere. The industries
release gallons of liquid waste into the seas and rivers. Some of the
effluents percolate down to the reach the ground water and pollute
it to the extent that it can't be used by human beings for drinking or
cooking. Besides adding to air pollution, the innumerable vehicles
running on the roads add to noise pollution that has lead to
increase in stress, anxiety and problems related to hearing and
breathing.. Pollution of water has led to the decrease in a number of
large number aquatic life forms. Migratory birds are forced to
change their course due to pollution or change in weather.
Respiratory diseases in human beings is another price that we are
paying for polluting the environment.

Pollution is something that we face on an everyday basis; probably

this is something we may even be immune in our fast paced lives.
Air pollution and noise pollution are increasing at an alarming rate
today. Air pollution occurs with the addition of harmful chemicals
into the earth’s atmosphere. The main pollutants that cause the
same are carbon monoxide, CFCs, nitrogen oxides and sulfur
dioxide. Water pollution is caused when wastes are released into
the water that contaminates the same. Soil can even be
contaminated due to various industrial activities. Noise pollution is
also a current environmental issue that causes harm in various
ways.

12.6.4 Deforestation
Expanding population, industrialization and need of land for
development activities in the expanding cities has led man to cut
down forests mercilessly. Not only are the forests home to a large
number of animals, trees are also an important component of the
water cycle. The roots of plants hold the soil together and prevent
soil erosion. The global forest cover has shrunk to half its area in
the last 11,000 years. During the period between 1990 and 2000
itself, the yearly loss of natural forests 16 million hectares.
Deforestation at such alarming rate has been a cause of constant
worries for environmentalists the world over. The land which is
recovered from deforestation for various purposes becomes

 
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vulnerable in short span of time due to flood, landslides and other

natural calamities.

12.6.5 Extinction of Species

over long period of time man is killing animals for variety of
purposes like food, skin, safety and entertainment right since the
time he acquired the skill of hunting. Although in those times
hunting was the means for survival, human beings continued to kill
animals even after he had learned to cultivate crops. The relentless
hunting by human beings, sometimes for the hide of a cheetah or
the tusks of the elephants, or simply to cook the tasty shark fin
soup, has wiped out the existence a large number of animals in just
a century. Besides hunting, human activities like environmental
pollution and deforestation has led to the extinction of a large
number of animals and plants due to loss of habitat. Recent studies
have shown that in North America, 37 animal species have become
extinct in the last 50 years due to human activities. Loss of habitat
led to the extinction of the Bali subspecies of tiger.

Thus, years of thoughtless exploitation of nature by man has

resulted in the effects of scars on our face now. The truth, that in
the bid to improve our lives, we have put our own survival to stake,
has finally hit us hard. Now as more and more studies and
researches are being carried out to understand how humans affect
the environment, an increasing number of people are awakening to
the fact that the well-being of the environment and survival are
intricately woven into each other.

12.6.6 Loss of Natural Resources

With the increase in population, one can see the loss of natural
resources. This is caused due to various human activities. There
are many reasons that cause loss of natural resources. This in turn
affects the ecosystems. Activities such as overfishing have even
caused many species to be on the brink of extinction. Forests are
being cleared to meet the rising demands for the need of paper,
wood or even for land. Mining and the burning of fossil fuels have
led to further depletion of resources.

12.6.7 Population explosion

The world's population has increased dramatically in the past
century. The growth has been primarily related to dramatic
increases in life expectancy and reduced infant mortality because of
advancements in health and sanitation field. Here two trends are
clearly visible. In developed countries family strength is restricted to
one or two children only while in developing economies fertility
index is very high resulted into explosion of population for not only
to that economy but also to the whole world.

 
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The environmental consequences of maintaining the world's high

population level are significant. In terms of providing the basic
necessities of life, the present high level of global human population
is not qualitatively sustainable. So far, world agricultural output has
outpaced the world's population increase even though many of the
world's agricultural regions remain poorly developed. The global
water supplies are severely challenged in some regions, better
water management and delivery may effectively solve this problem.

The major potential environmental impact of present and future high

global population levels is associated with the needs and
consequences of poorly regulated economic development. Carbon
dioxide emissions which are a result of rapid energy need and
transport expansion are disproportionately high in developing
countries. The destruction of global rain forests is related to both
population pressures and poorly regulated agro-economic
motivations. We need to believe that an environmental catastrophe
is inevitable unless there is an immediate drastic reduction in
population growth levels, while, the environmental damage caused
by high population/ fast developing economic sphere may
degenerate the quality of forthcoming opportunities from these
regions. Increase in income level without the expenditure priorities
result into unproductive expenditure on luxuries and consumerism
further put forth the demand for resources leading to shortage of
food, energy, transport means, fuel, water and consumables.

12.6.8 Genetically Modified Foods

The technological growth put forth the solution for the global hunger
in terms of genetically modified crops. This is due to the advances
in biochemical science leading to immediate introduction of food
varieties that are "genetically engineered". By modifying DNA
characteristics, scientists have successfully incorporated into plants
both input traits designed for the convenience of growers,
processors and marketers and output traits aimed at providing
direct nutritional and food quality benefits to consumers. Input traits
include pest and disease resistance, herbicide resistance, and
other techniques designed to increase crop yield. Because of more
predictable yields, these products have quickly gained quick
acceptance among American growers. Over 80% of American
soybeans and nearly 50% of American corn is presently based on
genetically engineered products. Globally, the percentage of
acreage devoted to these crops continues to climb.
Some environmentalists argue that the dangers posed by GM foods
involve the possibility that the food will produce a protein that is
toxic or allergenic to some or all human beings, the nature and
potency of that protein's toxicity or allergenicity, and the magnitude
of dietary exposure to that protein. Genetic modifications designed
to enhance input or output traits might incorporate proteins that

 
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induce allergenic responses in some sensitive people. Supporters

of genetically modified crops respond that there are actually some
current health benefits from these products and more can be
developed. In majority of the developed countries there are
restrictions in the consumption of the GM food, incidentally all are
the exporters of food.

Check Your Progress

1. Why environmental problems are increasing in the phase of
modernization?
2. Quote the reasons for ozone layer depletion?
3. Why industries to be blamed for creation of pollution?
4. How deforestation causes various environmental problems?
5. “Extinction of species can disturb the natural food chain”
Comment.

12.6.9 Movement of Hazardous waste

First thing you must know is what is solid and hazardous waste is
and how is it distributed and moving in the world. Solid Waste is
any material that is discarded because it has served its purpose or
is no longer useful.

Most of it coming from mining, oil and natural gas, agriculture,

sewage, and plants that produce the things that we need in our
everyday life. However, the reaming waste comes from municipal
solid waste. Sometimes you might even hear someone call
municipal sold waste “garbage.” Which come from our homes and
business in and around our neighborhood. Improper disposal of
municipal waste can create unsanitary conditions, and these
conditions in turn can lead to pollution of the environment and to
outbreaks of vector-borne disease i.e. diseases spread by rodents
and insects. In the world, the United States produces 33% of the
world’s solid waste.

With Hazardous waste is any waste material that, when improperly

handled, can cause substantial harm to human health and safety or
to the environment. The United Sates produces 75% of the world’s
hazardous waste. Over the last 100 years the amount of hazardous
waste has increased.

There are two ways to reduce the solid and hazardous waste that
we create everyday. One option is high waste approach which
views waste as inescapable product of economical growth. High
waste approach consists of burning, burying, or shipping the waste
to other states or countries. The next option would be a low waste
approach that would consist of recycling, composting, reusing, or
not using it in the first place. Solid and hazardous waste could be
eliminated by reduction, reuse, recycling, and redesign. We can

 
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also consume less by deciding how much a product is really

needed. Redesigning manufacturing processes to use less
material, energy and generating less pollution, and waste. Develop
products that are easy to reuse, repair, remanufacture, compost, or
recycle. As well as, designing product that will last longer than
currents ones. Furthermore eliminating or reducing unnecessary
packing (taking things that can’t be recycled etc.) In addition by
implementing more taxes to reduce waste, and use the revenues to
reduce taxes on income and national wealth.

CHECK YOUR PROGRESS

1. What it ‘garbage’ where it generates?
2. What is difference between hazardous waste & solid waste?
3. Which are the ways to be implemental to reduce the waste
formation?

12.6.10 Loss of Biodiversity

Biodiversity is the variation of life forms within a given ecosystem,
biome, or on the entire Earth. Biodiversity is often used as a
measure of the health of biological systems. The biodiversity found
on Earth today consists of many millions of distinct biological
species. The year 2010 has been declared as the International
Year of Biodiversity.

Biodiversity is not distributed evenly on Earth, but is consistently

rich in the tropics and in specific localized regions, it is less rich in
polar regions where fewer species are found.

Rapid environmental modifications typically cause extinction of the

species in which due to unacceptable circumstance species are
eliminated from the earth surface. Of all species that have existed
on Earth, 99.9 percent are now extinct. Today there is concern that
the period since the emergence of humans is part of a mass
reduction in biodiversity, caused primarily by the impact humans
are having on the environment, particularly the destruction of plant
and animal habitats.

12.6.11 Acid Rain

Acid rain is rain or any other form of precipitation that is unusually
acidic. It has harmful effects on plants, aquatic animals, and
infastructure. Acid rain is mostly caused by human emissions of
sulfur and nitrogen compounds which react with the atmospheric
water to produce acids. In recent years, many governments have
introduced laws to reduce these emissions.
"Acid rain" is a popular term referring to the deposition of wet (rain,
snow, sleet, fog and cloudwater, dew) and dry (acidifying particles

 
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and gases) acidic components. The extra acidity in rain comes from
the reaction of primary air pollutants, primarily sulfur oxides and
nitrogen oxides, with water in the air to form strong acids (like
sulfuric and nitric acid). The main sources of these pollutants are
industrial power-generating plants and vehicles.

The acidity of the soil in measured in term of pH value. The pH of

fertile soil ranges between 6.4 to 9.6. if the soil is having value
beyond these values they are called acidic or alkaline respectively.

Effects of Acid Rain

The most important effects are: damage to freshwater aquatic life,
damage of vegetation and damage to buildings and material.

a) Damage to aquatic life: - The main impact of fresh water

acidification is a reduction in diversity and populations of fresh
water species. The soil organisms are killed in acid rain where soils
have limited capacity to maintain the fertility. Acid rain releases
metals particularly aluminium from the soil, which can build up in
lake water to levels that are toxic to fish and other organisms. A
decline in fish and amphibian population will affect the food chain of
birds and mammals that depend on them for food.

b) Damage to Trees and Plants

For some years there has been concern about the apparent
deterioration of trees and other vegetation. It is not easy to
establish the cause of damage: pollution, drought, frost, pests and
forest management methods can all affect tree health. SO2 has a
direct toxic effect on trees and in industrial areas where SO2 levels
are very high, extensive areas of forest have been damaged or
destroyed.

Acid deposition may combine with other factors to affect tree health;
for instance by making trees more susceptible to attack by pests, or
by acidifying soils which may cause loss of essential nutrients such
as magnesium, thus impairing tree growth. Nitrogen and sulphur
are both plant nutrients and deposition can upset the balance of
natural plant communities
by encouraging the growth of other plant species. Secondary
pollutants like ozone are also known to exacerbate the effects of
acid deposition.

c) Damage to Buildings and Materials

All historic buildings suffer damage and decay with time. Natural
weathering causes some of this but there is no doubt that air
pollution, particularly SO2, also plays an important part. SO2
penetrated porous stones such as limestone and marble and is
converted to calcium sulphate, which causes gradual crumbling.
Most building damage happens in urban areas where there are
many SO2 emitters (domestic chimneys, factories and intensive

 
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transport system). The introduction of the Clean Air Acts and the
replacement of thermal power plants by other forms of energy has
not generated a change particularly in developing world as the
demand for fossile fuel is large and immediate.

12.6.12 CRZ violation

The sensitive environment of the coastal line has been affected due
to the unrestrained developmental activities since the past two
decades. Hence, in many areas of the world the administration has
put restrictions on development of economic establishments and
activities in coastal areas. This is called as Coastal Regulation
Zone (CRZ) notifications.

In India, The union government has so far incorporated 25

amendments to the Notification and the present amendment is the
26th one. The main objective of this amendment is to save the
7,500 km long coastal line of the state from further danger. Though
the union government has banned industrial activities close by the
shores (within 500 mts) on the coastal belt, the same had been
neglected by the state governments. The state government
agencies which ought to have initiated stern action against violators
of CRZ rules, have remained inactive. This being the case, the
question naturally arises as to what purpose would another
amendment to the notification serve.

The CRZ had sought to regularise the population and commercial

pressure on the active playzone of the sea waves. The coast was
divided in to four zones, the first the islands and estuaries which are
to be left alone except for national security measures, the second
was 200 metres from the shore which should be free for the waves,
the third and fourth measuring up to 500 metres were marked "no
development" zone. The CRZ, considering the population pressure
along the coast, had conceded that the fisherfolks' shelter and
settlements in the "no development zone" may be allowed to exist if
they are built long before the CRZ came in to existence.

The states which have violated the CRZ rules to the maximum are
Kerala and Goa(due to tourism temptation?). The two state
governments which had permitted raising of hotels and resorts on
beaches have contributed the maximum towards disturbing
ecological balance. These states are even defending their acts by
saying it were the presence of resorts in beaches that have helped
in development of tourism in their states.
The rules of CRZ notification have banned any industrial activity or
construction of houses within a 500 meter radius from the shore
line. But, not even a single state government has implemented this
rule effectively. Instead, in some states one can see a number of
industries as well as luxurious resorts on beaches. Some of these
resorts are even owned by social & political elites.

 
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Check Your Progress

1. Define the term CRZ.

2. How the zonation of CRZ is done.
3. “CRZ” violation can create distruction Discuss.

12.6.13 Disposal of Solid waste

The problem of solid waste is a growing concern for developing as
well as developed parts of the world. It includes agricultural refuse,
domestic waste, industrial waste, chemical and hazardous waste.
There are four major sources of solid waste.
a. agricultural
b. mining
c. municipal & household
d. industrial.

Disposal of the solid waste is always a major concern to all

economies. Till the moment waste does not become a problem
generating source like odors, infectious bacteria, directly impact on
animal or human body, it is always neglected in every economy.
After the generation of such problems the processes of disposal are
started.

Disposal of solid waste, it is likely that the waste is never thought of

again. But in majority of the times disposal is understood as
‘throwing away’. Unfortunately, throwing waste “away” does not
mean that it just vanishes. There are both environmental and
financial impacts of solid waste disposal. Disposing of less waste by
implementing various waste reductions and recycling efforts can
help ease environmental impacts in our community as well as
provide real cost savings. We need to understand that waste is a
wasted resource. The more waste that is disposed of, the greater
the cost to your bottom line and the environment.

Some of the waste disposal methods are

a. Landfills in which it is dumped in the remote aeas in near

future the attepta to extract products like methane gas.

b. Compost, in which biodegradable waste is decomposed

naturally by bacteria and that can be used as manure.

c. Burning that eliminate the source of infectious organisms in

case like medical waste.

d. Recycling which is particularly possible in rubber, metals,

plastic materials etc. where the material is reused in economy
and the processing cost is also reduced.

 
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Check Your Progress

1. Why developing countries are facing the major problem of
solid waste disposal?
2. What are the major sources of solid waste generation?
3. Which methods are generally adopted for solid waste
Disposal?

12.7 INDIA ENVIRONMENTAL STATUS THEIR

CAUSES & IMPACTS
India’s main environmental concern is its growing population, which
is expected to increase to 1.6 billion by the year 2050. In order to
feed so large a population, more groundwater will be needed to
irrigate crops, increasing the risk of poor soil quality due to
salinization (increased salt levels). More artificial fertilizer will likely
be applied to crop fields, posing threats to drinking water. The
demand for meat has increased with greater levels of prosperity,
resulting in overgrazing and increasing wasteland. The demand for
fuel wood has grown with rural populations, leading to the loss of
trees and forests. To decrease reliance on fuel wood, the
government has promoted the use of biogas (a mixture of methane
and carbon dioxide produced by decomposing organic matter) for
cooking fuel.

Expanding agrarian population has also affected wildlife. Farmers

and herders have encroached on national park and other wildlife
sanctuary land, and the spread of cultivation has limited the range
of animals such as tigers and elephants outside of parks as well.
Poaching is also a problem. Up to 10 percent of India’s flora—about
1,300 species—are critically endangered, mainly because of the
population-related pressures of deforestation and agriculture.
Wetlands cover about 18 percent of the land, but most of them are
under rice-paddy cultivation. To help combat these problems, the
Indian government has enacted strong laws for forest conservation,
wetland preservation, and wildlife protection. The Ministry of
Environment and Forests was established in 1985

There are many environmental problems in India, such as

overgrazing, deforestation, air pollution, water pollution, and threats
to endangered species which are growing rapidly. We will try to
understand some of those. The increasing economic development
and a rapidly growing population that has taken the country from
300 million people in 1947 to more than one billion people today is
putting a strain on the environment, infrastructure, and the country’s
natural resources. Industrial pollution, soil erosion, deforestation,
rapid industrialization, urbanization, and land degradation are all
worsening problems.

Overexploitation of the country's resources be it land or water and

the industrialization process has resultedenvironmental degradation

 
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of resources. Environmental pollution is one of the most serious

problems facing humanity and other life forms on our planet today.
Some of these issues highlight the conflict between capital-
intensive development projects and local interests

With India's population at more than 1.2 billion people and

counting, plus internal economic migration to urban areas from the
countryside, the country's cities are bursting at the seams. Housing
shortages, electricity and water cuts, traffic congestion, pollution
and a lack of basic services are the reality for millions.

There are polluting social practices which have done the damage
most to river Ganga. People consign dead bodies to river Ganga
with a belief that the departed soul will be salvaged, go to heaven.
Pollution of Ganges consumes crorers of rupees every year but
without touching the root cause behind. Government sponsors the
river pollution on a massive scale. There are bathing festivals on
certain occasions when millions of people flock to the river to have
a holy dip. Much more resources have been spent in organizing
these festivals than in cleaning the river.

Population growth is the most important factor in increasing

environmental destruction. India's population grows by 1,815
people per hour. Though India launched a family planning program
long back, but this has failed to have any impact. The literate,
educated and financially well-off people have voluntarily adopted
small family norm. But the majorities who are poor, illiterate and
uneducated don't even think about family planning. Government
started forced sterilizations in 1975 which led to the fall of the then
government.

It's being predicted that soon we'll overtake China in population

size. The present range of efforts in this area suggest that it will
take about 2050 to stabilise the Indian population i.e. the growth
rate of population will be 1 percent per annum.

12.7.1 Deforestation
India is witnessing a rising demand for forest-based products. This
is causing deforestation and encroachment into forest protected
areas, which leads to a severe loss of natural resources.

It is estimated that total industrial roundwood consumption in India

could exceed 70 million m3 per year by the end of the decade
(350,000 large shipping containers), while domestic supply would
fall short of this figure by an estimated 14 million m3. As the nation
will have to depend heavily on imports to meet this growing
demand, there is fear that this could result in loss of high
conservation value forests and biodiversity elsewhere.

 
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12.7.2 Pollution
India has a severe air pollution problem generated by industrial
effluents and vehicle emissions. Water-treatment facilities have not
kept pace with the increase in urban populations, and pollution of
rivers and groundwater is a significant and worsening problem.
Another major problem is toxic waste, generated by industry and
deposited in rivers and oceans and on low-lying land within factory
boundaries. The large number of small industrial workshops makes
it difficult to enforce laws against industrial waste with existing or
planted forests. India has had tremendous success with species
conservation. World-renowned programs include Project Tiger,
which has established nine special tiger reserves, and the
Crocodile Breeding and Management Project. Many
nongovernmental organizations are working for the causes.

Check Your Progress

1. Fill in the gaps :
a) Rootcause of India’s Environmental problem is its ________.
b) India’s population will increase to ________ billion by the
year ________.
c) India’s ________ species are citically endangered mainly
because of ________.
d) ________ of resources created environmental pollution.
e) The expected population growth rate for India is ________ y.
per annum.

2. Which environmental problems India is facing at present.

12.7.3 Desertification
Desertification is a global phenomenon of land degradation, which
reduces the natural potential of the ecosystems and has a direct
impact on people in terms of vulnerability to food shortages and
natural disasters, depletion of natural resources and deterioration of
the environment. Half the land in India is now affected by
desertification and this impairs the ability of land to support life. It is
particularly devastating because of its self-reinforcing nature.

The causes of desertification are extensive cultivation of one crop,

use of chemical fertilisers and pesticides, shifting cultivation without
adequate period of recovery, industrial and mining activities,
overgrazing, logging and illegal felling, forest fires and
unsustainable water management. Even though India’s land area
is only 2.4 percent of the world’s total land area, it supports 16.67
percent of the world’s population and 18 percent of its livestock.
These pressures alone play a major role in promoting
desertification. As the human and animal population increases,
these stresses will become greater and the demand on natural
resources will increase leading to permanent loss of vegetation and
plant species. This may also lead to the conversion of large areas
into wastelands and to the frequent occurrence of natural disasters.

 
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Vegetation plays an essential role in protecting the soil, especially

trees and shrubs, because their long life and capacity to develop
powerful root systems assure protection against soil erosion. Their
disappearance can considerably increase the vulnerability of the
land to turn into a wasteland.

The solutions for such problems although suggested by many

environmentalists in the world that is not the new thing to Indians.
Our conventional thoughts suggested by Gandhiji about
conservation are based on some of his basic principles like non-
violence, simple living in harmony with nature. He was critical of
western consumerism and materialism. He was of the opinion that
the modern western civilization which equated consumerist lifestyle
and abundance with development was self-destructive in nature.

Gandhi said Earth has enough to satisfy the needs of all the people,
but not for satisfying the greed of some people. Gandhi also
emphasized to keep in view the future generations before using up
natural resources by the present generation

Check Your Progress

1. What is Desertification?
2. Which are the basic cause for Desertification?
3. Suggest some solutions to overcome this problem?

12.8 LET US SUM UP

Thus in this unit we have comprehended that although the world is
facing variety of problems majority of those is a result of our poor
understanding of nature as a system and irrational activities.

We may perceive that these activities may result into a problem in

future. This perception by a mass from society can be called as
concern.

Environmental problem is always evolve slowly but in a steady

manner. Nature always responds to human activities. If we neglect
those signals by nature, the response will be in a massive manner.
Technology which is an inevitable part of human civilization, evolve
continuously as a response to our needs. In many cases we
wrongly execute technology and harm the nature. The combine
results of all are of environmental problems. Those are
deforestation, ozone depletion, increase in global temperature,
population growth, loss of biodiversity, CRZ violation, desertification
etc.

The solution for many of these problems lies in change in our own

 
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approach and life-style. Our conventional lifestyle which use to

emphasis on using nature while giving due respect to it, consume
what ever is required and minimization of population growth will
ensure that nature will endlessly provide the support to human
existence. In absence of which there will be debacle like global
warmth and extinction of organic life from the earth surface.

12.9 UNIT END EXERCISE

1. How does environmental problem arise?
2. Explain the process of global warming.
3. How is population growth responsible for environmental
degradation?
4. What is meant by genetically modifies food? Elaborate the
controversy.
5. Elaborate the state of india’s environment.
6. Why is biodiversity necessary in the nature?
7. Elaborate major environmental concerns.
8. Explain for the prominence of contemporary environmental
problems.

 
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13
ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENTS

Unit Structure:

13.0 Introduction

13.1 Objectives

13.2 Environmental movement – the concept

13.3 Perspective of environmental movements in the world

13.4 Major environmental movements in the world

13.5 Environmental movements in India

13.6 Role of media and public in environmental protection

13.7 Towards a better environment – our role

13.8 Let us sum up

13.9 Unit end exercise

13.0 INTRODUCTION

In earlier units we have seen that at a global level there is variety of

environmental problems and most of those are developed due to
human negligence of the nature. Once man has detected that
problems are responsible for the poor growth of his development
project in contemporary period or in the future, he develops the
agitation.

 
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The insecurity leads to mobilization of population and the opinion

towards the elimination of the problem or to curtail it. This leads to
environmental movement.

13.1 OBJECTIVES

After reading this unit, you may be able to

• understand the environmental movement possesses multiple

facets
• Comprehend the geographical and temporal aspects of
environmental movements.
• Human being plays a duel role of generator of the problem
as well as a reformer to reduce the intensity of the problem.

13.2 ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENT – THE CONCEPT

Environmental movement is a term often used for any social or

political movement directed towards the preservation, restoration,
or enhancement of the natural environment. It includes the
conservation of nature and green politics, is a diverse scientific,
social, and political movement for addressing environmental issues
in any region.

The term emphasize on Environmentalists appeal for the

sustainable management of resources and long-term existence of
the good quality environment through changes in public policy and
individual behavior.

Most environmental movements have similar value systems and

moral codes, and cite common heroes and moral examples for their
purposes, although they often diverge in details such as emphasis,
priorities, means of action, and specific goals; this is always
according to the regional diversities.

Environmental movements are among the most vibrant, diverse,

and powerful social movements occurring across all areas of the
world. They range from government lobbies raising campaign funds

 
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to save the local and regional areas; to the conflict and mass
interest group in the mountains to coastal regions of the different
countries; to small landholders and indigenous peoples in India who
refuse to leave their villages like the people threatened by the flood
waters of the Narmada River as it rises due to its damming.

There is no one global environmental movement; rather, there are

many, in number as well as in their orientation and the areas of
interests. Majority of the movements in the third world tend to be
oriented around issues of human health, shelter, food security, and
survival; while those of the developed world-for example, the United
States, England, Germany, and Australia -can afford to focus on
post-materialist issues such as wilderness concerns and animal
rights environmental balance etc. The consequences of these
campaigns are as wide-ranging as their motives and methods.

The start of the environmental movement is always at the

grassroots level as it is oriented to certain problem. Environmental
movements in two different regions although oriented to a particular
single problem are not always united in its goals. Because there
happens to be a diversity of natural parameters, responding
spheres from the government and moreover it encompasses private
citizens, professionals, religious devotees, politicians, and in some
cases extremists. However, it has its recognition of humanity as a
participant in and not enemy of ecosystems, the movement is
centered on ecology, health, and human rights.

13.3 PERSPECTIVE OF ENVIRONMENTAL

MOVEMENTS IN THE WORLD

The roots of the modern environmental movement can be traced to

attempts in nineteenth-century Europe and North America to
expose the costs of environmental negligence, notably disease, as
well as widespread air and water pollution, but only after the
Second World War did a wider awareness begin to emerge.

During the 1950s, 1960s, and 1970s, several events illustrated the
magnitude of environmental damage caused by humans.

 
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In 1954, the 23 man crew of the Japanese fishing vessel Lucky

Dragon 5 was exposed to radioactive fallout from a hydrogen bomb
test at Bikini Atoll. The publication of the book Silent Spring (1962)
by Rachel Carson drew attention to the impact of chemicals on the
natural environment. In 1967, the oil tanker Torrey Canyon went
aground off the southwest coast of England, and in 1969 oil spilled
from an offshore well in California's Santa Barbara Channel. In
1971, the conclusion of a law suit in Japan drew international
attention to the effects of decades of mercury poisoning on the
people of Minamata.

At the same time, emerging scientific research drew new attention

to existing and hypothetical threats to the environment and
humanity.

Among them was P. R. Ehrlich, whose book The Population Bomb

(1968) revived concerns about the impact of exponential population
growth. Biologist Barry Commoner generated a debate about
growth, affluence and "flawed technology." Additionally, an
association of scientists and political leaders known as the Club of
Rome published their report The Limits to Growth in 1972, and
drew attention to the growing pressure on natural resources from
human activities.

Meanwhile, technological accomplishments such as nuclear

proliferation and photos of the Earth from outer space provided both
new insights and new reasons for concern over Earth's seemingly
small and unique place in the universe.

In 1972, the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment

was held in Stockholm, and for the first time united the
representatives of multiple governments in discussion relating to
the state of the global environment. This conference led directly to
the creation of government environmental agencies and the UN
Environment Program. The United States also passed new
legislation such as the Clean Water Act, the Clean Air Act, the
Endangered Species Act, and the National Environmental Policy
Act- the foundations for current environmental standards.

 
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By the mid-1970s anti-nuclear activism had moved beyond local

protests and politics to gain a wider appeal and influence. Although
it lacked a single coordinating organization the anti-nuclear
movement's efforts gained a great deal of attention. After the Three
Mile Island accident in 1979, many mass demonstrations took place
in USA. The largest one was held in New York City in September
1979 and involved two hundred thousand people; speeches were
given by Jane Fonda and Ralph Nader.

Since the 1970s, public awareness, environmental sciences,

ecology, and technology have advanced to include modern focus
points like ozone depletion, global climate change, acid rain, and
the potentially harmful genetically modified organisms (GMOs).

13.4 MAJOR ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENTS IN THE

WORLD

Modern Environmentalism was based on the spread of an

ecological consciousness that viewed the natural world as a
biological and geological system that is an interacting whole.
Ecologists emphasized human responsibility for the impact of their
daily living on a wider natural world, fearing that human disruption
of the earth’s ecosystem threatened the survival of the planet. The
spread of ecological consciousness from the scientific world to the
general public was reflected in popular metaphors of the planet as
Spaceship Earth or Mother Earth. An ecological consciousness was
evident even in works of popular culture.

By the end of the 1980s, the environmental movement had

increasingly come to focus its attention on global issues that could
only be resolved through international diplomacy. Issues such as
global warming, acid rain, ozone depletion, biodiversity, marine
mammals, and rain forests could not be dealt with merely on the
national level. As residents in the world’s largest economy, and
consequently the world’s largest polluter, consumer of energy, and
generator of waste, American environmentalists felt a special
responsibility to ensure their country’s participation in international
agreements to protect the earth.

 
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Environmentalists were an important part of an “antiglobalization”

coalition that coalesced at the end of the 1990s. It argued that the
expansion of the global economy was occurring without proper
environmental and labor standards in place. In 1999, globalization
critics gained international attention by taking to the streets of
Seattle to protest a meeting of the World Trade Organization.

Following are the some Environmental Organisations working for

environmental protection

• African Wildlife Foundation works to conserve the wild

animals of Africa and the land they inhabit.
• The Alliance for Justice is a national association of
environmental, civil rights, mental health, women’s,
children’s and consumer advocacy organizations
• The American Council for an Energy-Efficient Economy
(ACEEE) is dedicated to advancing energy efficiency as a
means of promoting both economic prosperity and
environmental protection.
• The Center for a Livable Future promotes policies to
protect health, the environment and sustainable living.
• Clean Water Network is an alliance of over 1000
organizations working to protect our nation’s water
resources.
• Conservation International promotes biodiversity
conservation in endangered ecosystems worldwide.
• CREST provides information about energy efficiency,
renewable energy and sustainable technology information
and connections.
• Defenders of Wildlife works to protect wild animals and
plants in their natural communities.
• Earth First! Works to protect wilderness through radical
means.
• Earth Island Institute provides organizational support in
developing projects to protect the global environment.
• Earth Share manages workplace giving campaigns for its
member charities.
• Earthjustice Legal Defense Fund strives to protect people
and natural resources by enforcing and strengthening
environmental laws (formerly the Sierra Club Legal Defense
Fund).
• Earthwatch sponsors scientific field research to improve
understanding of the planet and its inhabitants.
• Energy & Environmental Research Center (EERC)
provides multidisciplinary research and development of
innovative energy and environmental technologies for the
protection of air, water and soil.

 
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• Environmental Defense combines science, economics, and

law to find economically sustainable solutions to
environmental problems.
• Environmental Literacy Council offers links to
environmental resources on the web.
• Environmental Working Group provides the public with
locally relevant information on the environment.
• Friends of the Earth USA focuses on the underlying social
and economic causes of environmental problems.
• Greenpeace uses non-violent, creative confrontation to
expose global environmental problems and force solutions.
• League of Conservation Voters is a bipartisan group
working to educate voters and win elections on behalf of the
environment.
• National Audubon Society works through advocacy, policy,
science, litigation, sanctuary management, grassroots
outreach and education to protect birds and their habitats.
• National Coalition for Marine Conservation is dedicated to
conserving ocean fish, preventing overfishing, reducing
bycatch and protecting habitat.
• National Environmental Trust is a non-partisan
organization dedicated to educating the American public on
contemporary environmental issues.
• National Parks and Conservation Association (NPCA) is
dedicated to protecting, preserving and enhancing the U.S.
National Park System.
• National Religious Partnership for the Environment
seeks to integrate commitment to global sustainability and
environmental justice into all aspects of religious life.
• National Wildlife Federation unites individuals,
organizations, businesses and government to protect nature
and wildlife.
• Natural Resources Defense Council protects the
environment and human health through advocacy, litigation,
research and education. (And publishes this website!)
• The Nature Conservancy preserves habitats and species
by buying the lands and waters they need to survive.
• Nuclear Control Institute monitors nuclear activities
worldwide and pursues strategies to reverse the growth of
nuclear arms.
• Oceana works to protect and restore the world’s oceans
through advocacy, science, law and public education.
• Public Agenda provides information on issues ranging from
abortion to welfare.
• Public Interest Research Group (PIRG) is an association
of watchdog organizations dedicated to safeguarding the
public interest and protecting the environment.

 
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• Rainforest Action Network protects rainforests through

education, grassroots organizing and non-violent direct
action.
• Rainforest Alliance promotes research and education to
conserve tropical rainforests.
• Scenic America protects scenic roads, prevents billboards
from trashing our highways and helps people create more
attractive communities.
• Sierra Club promotes environmental conservation by
influencing public policy – legislative, administrative, legal,
and electoral.
• Society of Environmental Journalists is a membership
group of print and broadcast journalists as well as educators
and students. SEJ’s purpose is to enable journalists to better
inform the public about critical issues concerning the
environment.
• Southern Environmental Law Center is the only
environmental organization dedicated solely to protecting the
natural resoures of the southeastern United States.
• Southern Utah Wilderness Alliance works to protect the
magnificent canyon country and unspoiled public lands
surrounding Utah’s prized national parks.
• Union of Concerned Scientists is dedicated to advancing
responsible public policies in areas where science and
technology play a critical role.
• The Wilderness Society protects wild places in the United
States through public education, policy work and litigation.
• Wildlife Conservation Society, headquartered at New York
City’s Bronx Zoo, works to save wildlife and wild lands
throughout the world.
• The Woods Hole Research Center addresses
environmental issues through scientific research and
education.
• World Resources Institute helps governments and private
organizations cope with environmental, resource and
development challenges of global significance.
• World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) seeks to reverse
degradation of the environment by promoting biodiversity
and sustainability, while minimizing pollution and
consumption.
• World Wildlife Fund (U.S.) dedicated to protecting the
world’s wildlife and wildlands.

 
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13.5 ENVIRONMENTAL MOVEMENTS IN INDIA

DURING the past twenty years people in various regions of India

have formed nonviolent action movements to protect their
environment, their livelihood, and their ways of life. These
environmental movements have emerged from the Himalayan
regions of Uttar Pradesh to the tropical forests of Kerala and from
Gujarat to Tripura in response to projects that threaten to dislocate
people and to affect their basic human rights to land, water, and
ecological stability of life-support systems. They share certain
features, such as democratic values and decentralized decision
making, with social movements operating in India. The
environmental movements are slowly progressing toward defining a
model of development to replace the current resource-intensive one
that has created severe ecological instability (Centre for Science
and Environment 1982, 190). Similar grassroots environmental
movements are emerging in Japan, Malaysia, the Philippines,
Indonesia, and Thailand. Throughout Asia and the Pacific citizenry
organizations are working in innovative ways to reclaim their
environment.

Even with limited resources the environmental movements have

initiated a new political struggle for safeguarding the interests of the
poor and the marginalized, among whom are women, tribal groups,
and peasants. Among the main environmental movements are
Chipko Andolan and Save the Bhagirathi and Stop Tehri project
committee in Uttar Pradesh; Save the Narmada Movement
(Narmada Bachao Andolan) in Madhya Pradesh and Gujarat; youth
organizations and tribal people in the Gandhamardan Hills whose
survival is directly threatened by development of bauxite deposits;
the opposition to the Baliapal and Bhogarai test range in Orissa, the
Appiko Movement in the Western Ghats; groups opposing the
Kaiga nuclear power plant in Karnataka; the campaign against the
Silent Valley project; the Rural Women’s Advancement Society
(Gramin Mahila Shramik Unnayam Samiti), formed to reclaim waste
land in Bankura district; and the opposition to the Gumti Dam in
Tripura.

 
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In addition, there are local movements against deforestation,

waterlogging, salinization, and desertification in the command areas
of dams on the Kosi, Gandak, and Tungabhadra rivers and in the
canal-irrigated areas of Punjab and Haryana. Local movements like
Pani Chetna, Pani Panchyat, and Mukti Sangharsh advocate
ecological principles for water use. A movement in the small fishing
communities against ecological destruction exits along the coasts of
India.

These environmental movements are an expression of the

socioecological effects of narrowly conceived development based
on short-term criteria of exploitation.

The movements are revealing how the resource-intensive demands

of development have built-in ecological destruction and economic
deprivation. The members have activated micro-action plans to
safeguard natural processes and to provide the macro-concept for
ecological development at the national and regional levels. In the
rest of this article I focus on the Chipko movement in the Himalaya,
Save the Narmada Movement in central India, and the Silent Valley
Project in Kerala as case studies of the nonviolent direct-action
environmental movements of grassroots origin in India.

Some of the elite movements in India are listed below

CHIPKO MOVEMENT : It was started in 1973 is the Chamoli district

of Uttranchal, Chipko movement was against deforestation.
Sunderlal Bahueguna , Gauri devi & Chandi Prasad Bhatt were
prominent leaders of this movement.

• BISHNOI MOVEMENT :

it was started in 400 years ago by a Sage known as Sombaji. In

Rajasthan, a large number of trees are still worshiped by
devotees. People resisted the cutting of such tree & advocated
movement against deforestation.

 
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• NARMADA BACHAO ANDOLAN :

it is a movement against building multi-purpose dam over

Narmada river which will ultimately result in flood & water
logging in large area covered by about 1,00,000 people. The
movement is led by Medha Potekar, Baba Amte & Arundhati
Roy.

• SILENT VALLEY MOVEMENT :

it was a movement against a hydro-electric project on the river

Kuthipuzha, atributory at Preiyar river. In fact, the project site is
covered by evergreen forest which is a home of many rare
species of plants & fauna which many be destroyed by
submergence.

• BALIYAPAL MOVEMENT :

It is a movement against testing of missiles on the land of

Baliyal villagers which may lead to interfertitlity of soil.

• THE PLCHIMADA STRUGGLE:

The struggle against the multi-national Coca-Cola factory at
Plachimada of Perumatty Panchayat in Chittoor Taluk of
Palakkad district, Kerala has shown unique consistency and
perseverance . It has attracted considerable amount of
international media attention and thus being projected as a
symbolic model of resistance against multi-national colonization.
As a result, similar struggles against Coca-Cola and the
exploitation of scarce groundwater resources for its sake, is
gaining momentum in Sivaganga in Tamilnadu and in Orissa.

 
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13.6 ROLE OF MEDIA AND PUBLIC IN

ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION

Information is power and those who have a hold over the valuable
relevant information and the expertise on how to impart it to the
right audiences have an immensely important tool in their hands.

The relation between media and its role in imparting environmental

education and awareness to its audiences stands as a testimony to
how powerful can the impact of information be.

Media and its various channels are important in their role of

spreading awareness and information on the various aspects of
environmental education, & protection. Having a strong readership
and viewership, the various channels of media are the perfect
medium to spread the message about the environment. The role of
media in environmental education can be well gauged from the fact
that almost all of the major business houses, political groups and
social organizations use special promotional clips and programmes
to promote the message of environmental education through this
medium. Whether it is print media, electronic mode or the web,
messages and educational documentaries regarding environmental
education abound on each of the mediums, clearly laying out the
role of media in environmental protection and conservation for the
onlooker.

Media also book and highlight the ill-practices that might be carried
out by individuals or organizations. By giving adequate publicity to
the defaulters’ actions and the steps taken against them or
penalties charged therein, the authorities can manage to set a good
example for others who might default at some other time.

The role of media in environmental protection is also reflected in its

ability to spread awareness regarding the government’s rules,
regulations. The public in general remains quite unaware of any

 
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new legislation or order declared by the government unless it is

broadcast well on the various popular channels of media which are
watched by millions across the globe.

Similarly, the role of media in environmental awareness is also

extremely helpful for a common man who can simply use this
medium to air his/her grievance regarding the matter to even share
important tips or guidelines for environmental protection through the
various channels of media. Today not only physical media but the
virtual media too is very alert about the environmental conservation
and protection. In fact this is the most rapid mode to diffuse the
information about the need of that specific time.

Around the world millions of young as well as adult people are

becoming involved locally, nationally and globally through new
programs and infrastructure with the cause of development and its
related issues. At the local level, numerous programs are being
established to provide education, leadership training, and
opportunities for youth to serve as resources to their communities.
At the national level, a growing number of countries are establishing
policies and programs which support on-going service by youth
through service and conservation corps, volunteer-based learning
reform in the schools, and stipend service. At the international level,
foundations, multi-lateral donors, and associations have begun to
focus on how to stimulate greater support for methodologies which
promote positive youth development and youth volunteering. Youth
can not only work for the purpose but they can also become
catalyst for the rapid environmental movement. This is proved in
many countries including India. They developed innovative modes
not only to propagate the information but also fight with complete
enthusiasm for the environment.

Despite the powerful communication potential of our technological

age, most information is fragmented, thus limiting the possibility of
organizing strategies for scaling up youth volunteering or sharing
effective practices within countries and across borders. The lack of
information limits the public awareness as to the importance of
investing in and supporting programs that involve youth in
volunteerism in many countries.

 
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Most of our youth in our country are living in poverty or the

scarcities of life. They are out of school or without access to formal
education. Oftentimes, basic services hardly reach them. They
have limited means of earning a living; much more participate in
decision-making activities. This situation leads them to become
vulnerable to the socio-economic and ecological conditions of the
environment. The role of the youth in environmental protection is
not being recognized by most sectors of society. However, some of
the social elite individually or with the help of non-governmental
organizations systematize the youth to give right direction in their
sustainability with the nature.

13.7 TOWARDS A BETTER ENVIRONMENT – OUR

ROLE

With an ever increasing pace, the human population, of the so

called ٛ ivilized nations, has put material things above the beauty,
magnificence and survival of the Earth. It is observed that money
and power more important than, our naturals like the wonder of
cool, fresh and clean spring water.

Water has been polluted and trees cut down in an endless tempo
for timber or new pasture land. Precious topsoil that took millennia
to make, blows away in the wind and is replaced with poisons to
which mankind should never have been exposed. The crisp, clean
air has been filled with dirt, filth and danger. Plants and animals that
have evolved in patient process, have been subjected to genetic
engineering often across the species simply in the name of profit. In
short, mankind had sought total control over the environment and
with potentially disastrous results.

Already there are many signs of the horrors that lie ahead if we do
not do something soon to stop this destructive trend. Landslides
and floods caused by dramatic changes in the topography of the
land; awful viruses such as Ebola and AIDS emerge from the rain
forests, where they had dwelt harmless to mankind for so long, as

 
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the forests are obliterated. Those that can stop this seem not to
listen and nor to care because to do so would mean an end to the
carefree, money-grubbing life they seem to like so much. The
politicians and corporate executives would have to forego their
wasteful and orgiastic lifestyles and they are not about to let that
happen.

We are rapidly approaching the point of no return. Soon, there will

be real danger of an oxygen deficit as the internal combustion
engine uses more and more of the life sustaining gas and
production falls as an increasing number of trees disappear. Water,
vital for life, will be more and more polluted and undrinkable; new
diseases will launch upon society and more people will be stricken
with the horrific illness that come as a direct result of the over use
of chemicals in agriculture, food production and in so many
industrial processes.

Each and every one of us must take a degree of responsibility for

the threat under which we now live. We are the consumer and it is
to satisfy our insatiable appetites that many of these things occur.
Of course, some of us do try to live a lifestyle that pays heed to the
environment but, often thanks to the marketing men, too many take
the easy way and help to exacerbate an already critical situation.

What can the individual do to stop and, ultimately reverse the

trend? Surprisingly, you might think, quite a lot and without making
too much additional effort. Most of the extra effort will go into
stopping to think before making buying decisions or before throwing
things away.

The ideas that follow are just a few of the easy-to-do things that,
individually, are small but, collectively will have a major impact and
make a big difference. Remember, this is not just an exercise in
simple conservation. It is an attempt to save the world from
extinction and render it safe and welcoming for our children, our
children’s children and generations yet to come.

 
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We have two simple alternatives. A world that is lush and green, air
fresh and life bringing, water clean and sustaining. A land where
children are born and grow without the fear of terrible disease or
starvation, a place where Man works and lives in harmony with
nature. Or a land incapable of sustaining life, mutated and grossly
deformed plants, animals and humans and one that is about to drop
over the edge to infinite extinction.

How can we help to save the nature? Yes, we can follow some of
the following guidelines.

1. Always think carefully before buying. The purchase should avoid

Wasteful, unnecessary and virtually indestructible materials. The
packaging can be a major threat to your environment. Take care
that the package material is not harmful to you, your children
and the environment. Avoid, indeed refuse, products that are
made with genetically modified organisms.

2. Buy some strong bags made of durable material that can be

used over and over again. Do not pick up dozens of plastic
bags. Plastic does not biodegrade easily and stays in landfills
for decades and releases toxins into the soil. Paper can be more
easily recycled than plastic.

3. Avoid using toxic chemicals and discourage the use by others.

Those toxins are long lasting and can be absorbed through the
skin. Toxins are available in spraying pesticides, herbicides and
fungicides, mosquito killers and may lead to deterioration of our
body and also cancer.

4. Eat organically grown fruit and vegetables and must be fresh,

free of chemicals. Avoid food prepared from genetically modified
crop or organism. Research has shown that growing the organic
way is not significantly more costly than other methods

 
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5. Think carefully about the things you can recycle or you can
replace with re-useable items like computer printers have
refillable cartridges, pen refills, metal washable plates and other
lots of unbreakable and long lasting alternatives.

6. Look more to Nature for the prevention and cure of some of

those common illnesses. There are lots of natural remedies in
the market and your family doctor will advise those. Carry them
and be happy; those are without bad side effects, and anti-
biotic.

One major thing that needs to be done and in which everyone can
play a part is to ensure that the representatives we elect do indeed
represents us. At present, it is well understood that their priorities
are their paymasters or labour unions, their party and, finally, if
there is time you the voter. That is not the right order of priority.
Appeal them for nature protection. Appeal them to ensure that your
fears, views and opinions are represented fairly. Can there be
anything more important than the survival of the planet upon which
we live?

13.8 LET US SUM UP

Thus, in this unit we have seen that environmental movements

emerged throughout the world at different points of time. However,
all were the result of some problem faced by the people and
reflected through the literature by the social elite.

Moreover, it is our role as a citizen of the country to understand in

time as an issue and to participate in the protection of the
environment.

 
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13.9 UNIT END EXERCISE

1. What is meant by environmental movement?

2. Why are environmental movements necessary in the world?
Explain with examples.
3. Write a note on environmental movements in the world.
4. Explain the role media need to play in the environmental
movement.
5. How can we reduce the stress on environment?

 
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14
ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENTS

Unit Structure

14.0 Objective

14.1 Introduction

14.2 Need for Environment Management

14.3 Environmental Impact Assessment - need & functioning

14.4 Environmental Audit / Statement

14.5 ISO - Features & importance

14.6 ISO 14000

14.7 ISO 16000

14.8 Role of Technology in Environment Management

14.9 Use of advanced techniques like GLS, GPS, and Remote Sensing

14.10 Carbon Credit, Carbon Trade & Carbon Bank

11.11 Let us sum up

14.12 Glossary

14.13 Unit End Exercises

 
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14.0 OBJECTIVES

After going through this chapter you will be able to :

- Need for conservation of environment for mankind.

- Understand the methods of environment management like

EIA, Environmental Statement, ISO 14000, ISO 16000 etc.

- Know the use of information technology in the field of

environmental management.

- Understand the use of GIS, Remote sensing and GPS to control

environmental degradation.

- Understand the concept of carbon Trading to protect our mother

earth.

- India’s attempts to reduce carbon emission.

14.1 INTRODUCTION

Environment plays an important role in the quality of human life and

healthy living. It also supports economic development. Sustainable
development is the need of the hour. Some of the environmental
problems we are facing today at global level are global warming, green
house effects, ozone depletion, acid rains, marine pollution, over-
exploitation of resources etc. on one hand and on the other hand, rapid
growth in population, industrial revolution, development in science and
technology are responsible for deterioration of the environment. Man has
to manage the entire happening. First we must understand, What is
management? and why do we need environmental management?

 
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14.2 NEED FOR ENVIRONMENT MANAGEMENT

Let us first discuss the meaning of the word management.

“Management is a distinct process consisting of planning, organising,

activating and controlling, performed to determine and accomplish the
objectives by the use of people and resources. Management is a series /
chain of functions, directed at the efficient, effective and enriching
utilisation of resources in pursuit of organising goals.” - George R. Terry.

The main “aim of environmental management” is the conservation of

environment for mankind’s sake. It is made up of appropriate approaches
and strategies adopted by individuals, communities nation and
international bodies to protect and preserves the environment.

The degradation of the environment poses a serious threat to humanity in

the present and raises doubtful question about its future. In traditional
economies people used to produce locally and consume goods locally
Globalisation and urbanisation with all its plus point has added to many
more problems. Human activity has strained natural function to such an
extent that it is becoming hazardous to other species on the planet.

14.2.1 Objectives of Environmental Management

There is a strong relationship between man and his environment.

Environment is been more exploited for their own interests and benefits in
the name of economic development. Production and consumption on
such a large scale leads to the harmful impacts on the environment.
There is a conflict like situation between means and end on the path of
progress.

a) The prime objective of environmental management is to chalk out

sustainable roadmap of progress. It enlightens on management
aspects of mankind’s interaction with the environment

 
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b) It suggest strategies in preserving biodiversity and supports to the

ecosystem.

c) Monitoring exploitation of natural resources, their rational and efficient

utilisation.

d) Protecting and safeguarding the environment through prevention and

controls methods.

e) Encouraging environmentally sound and environment friendly

technologies.

f) Suggesting suitable environmental laws and their effective and

purposeful implementation.

Check your Progress :-

1. “Environmental Mongered is the need of preset day.” Explain.

14.3 ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACT ASSESSMENT (EIA)

The objective of EIA is to declare a National policy to encourage man-

environment relationship, which in turn protects natural resources and
helps in mentioning ecological system to sustain man’s life on this planet.

EIA and environmental Audit or statement. are two terms coined in

U.S.A. under National Environmental policy Act in 1970. In India EIA
implemental in early 1980’s EIA is mandatory to all the existing as well as
upcoming projects. If any project needs modernisation, then also it has to
undergo a process of EIA. EIA report is prepared to help environmentally
sound development of the project in its surrounding region. EIA has to be
submitted to Department of Environment for scrutiny by committee &
afterword the members visits to site if necessary & then only project is
sanctioned or rejected.

EIA study consists of literature, research & field work and impact
assessment is done with the help of mathematical & statistical techniques.

 
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14.3.1 Steps used to prepare EIA Report :

Step - I : Finalisation of project site.

Step - II : Study the area in detail which is within the periphery of 10 to

15 km from the project site.

Step - III : Study of major features of the area within 30 to 50 km. radius
from the project site.

Step - IV : Preparation of land use map showing details of use of land

for various purposes around the site.

Step - V : Study of geological structure of surrounding region, so that

potentialities of rocks, soils, the forest cover can be checked
& how much will be the environmental impact on ecology can
be assessed.

Step - VI : Study about water availability, its quality & uses.

Step - VII : Study the impact of the project on the population, their normal
living & income earnings & soon.

There are many more, such parameters underwhich any project is

assessed. Thus EIA is not just a document but acts as a tool for any
establishment to prove their sustainable Development Programme.

Check your Progress :-

1. What is EIA? Explain the steps taken for EIA report.

 
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14.4 ENVIRNMENTAL STATEMENT

It is newly coined term for Environmental Audit, this term is changed to

Environmental Statement; by ministry of environment & forest, New Delhi.
In the initial Stage like financial audit, the idea of environmental audit was
initiated & made compulsory for all industries to submit Environmental
Audit Report. Industries needs to submit a report regarding the way the
production activities lead to deterioration of the environment & also has to
assess or quantify how much is the cost involved.

14.4.1 Benefits of Environmental Statement :

- It is a management tool to verify environmentally positive & negative

sides or Profit and loss.

- It can avoid the complaints raised against any company regarding

creation of environmental problems.

- It helps a company in identifying its advantages from past & present

actions done by them. So that they can able to continue its activities
or even can able to modify it.

- It can help to adopt more ecofriendly & cost effective technologies.

So that environment will be protected.

- The great benefit of environment statement is that it protect any

company from negative publicity against them.

Check your Progress :-

1. What benefits company gets through environmental statement?

 
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14.5 ISO : International Standards Organisation :

ISO derived from a Greek wood ‘ISOS’ meaning ‘EQUAL’ It is the

international organisation for standardisation founded on 23rd Feb. 1947.
So ISO forms equal standards for all industrial & commercial firms world
wide.

Such standards are required as they make an enormous & positive

contribution to most aspects of our lives. Standards ensure desirable
characteristics of products & services such as quality, environmental
friendliness, safety, reliability, efficiency, interchangibility & act an
economical cost. Therefore ISO enables a consensus to be reached on
solution that meets both the requirements of business & the broader
needs of society.

14.5.1 Important features of ISO :

- Its head quarter is in GENEVA, SWITZERLAND

- It is a non-governmental organisation world wide.

- It sets standards, which becomes law at national level.

- At present it has 159 members

- English, French & Russian are the official languages used.

- In Practice ISO acts as a consortium with strong links to governments

of different countries.

- ISO establish product standards under Quality system Standards

(QSS) Which has organised the manufacturing activity in a
systematic manner.

 
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- The first standard developed by this organisation related to quality

assurance is ISO 9000.

- The certification by this organisation becomes one of the major

marketing tool, through which the customers all over the world can be
assured for the products quality.

- In series of ISO 9000, now ISO 14000 for controlling environmental

problems & ISO 16000 related to indoor quality monitoring are also in
use.

Check your Progress :-

1. What are the important features of ISO

14.6 ISO 14000

This concept of the system standards is not being applied to control

environmental problems created by any industrial activity but also the
standards for control systems have developed by ISO under the series.
ISO 14000 in December 1996. It is now possible for any industrial unit to
design its Environmental. Management System (EMS).

It gives benefit of waste minimisation & conservation of energy & helps in

optimum utilisation of resources so that the product will become cost
effective & increases the profit of business activity.

ISO 14001 : 2004 is a standard of EMS to be adopted by any business

activity. The aim of the standard is to reduce environmental problems
created by any business, so that there will be reduction in pollution &
even waste generation. The recent version of ISO 14001 was released in
2004 which is again related to quality management.

ISO 14000 helps any business activity in following ways

 
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- To control & even identify the environment problems; generated by

its products manufacturing & services provided.

- Adopt a systematic approach to set environmental targets or goals

which can be easily achieved & repeatedly demonstrated
- Continue the Environmental Protection policy (EPP) to earn carbon
credits.
- It provides a framework for a holistic & strategic approach to the
organization’s EPP, plans & actions.
- Effective EMS has established a common reference for
communicating the environmental management issues between
organizations & their customers, the public etc.
- ISO 1400 : 2004 is a tool that can be used to meet internal &
external objectives of any business all over the world. Internally it
helps the management to continue their business with
environmental standards & assures employees that they are
working for an Environmentally Responsible Organisation.

Externally, it provides assurance about environmental sound activities, as

they get certification from an independent certification body working at
international level.

Like ISO 14000 : 2004, there are many more certification standards are
available up to 14063. e.g. – ISO 1404 : 2004 Provides guidelines on the
elements of an Environmental Management System, while. ISO 14063
deals with Environment Communication guidelines & examples.

14.7 ISO 16000

ISO 16000 is framed mainly for Indoor Pollution Monitoring (IPM). It deals
with significance of where the pollution exist & offers suggestions on how
to develop a suitable sampling strategy; So that there will be more
reliability & reproducibility of various products to reduce indoor pollution
even at our own homes.

 
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Need for ISO 16000 Standard

At present Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) is found at low level in

the atmosphere. It occurs every where in air inside the houses & even at
out door places like our work places. There are many measuring
procedures for atmospheric VOCs which includes a gas detector tube &
any kind of fixed or portable instrumental method. VOCs are emitted as
gases from certain solids or liquids. It includes variety of chemicals which
creates short as well as long term health effects. There are some other
pollutants found in air around us, such as Radon (Creates lung cancer),
Carbon monoxides, (can lead to nausea, unconsciousness, & even
death), Asbestos fibers (There are microscopic fibers. The long time
exposure to such fibers leads. to even lung cancer.)

In developing counties percentage of indoor air pollution is maximum as

compared to developed nations. It is mainly because of burring of wood,
cow dung, crop left out, charcoal for cooking & heating purposes. The
high levels of such particulate matters has caused 1.5 to 2 millions deaths
so far.

At present in countries like Europe, U.S.A. are having more reliable &
reproducible VOC emission. Chambers testing which are helping to
monitor the air quality & reduce the air pollution inside the house, outdoor
& even at workplaces.

Conclusion : The new draft harmonized environment standards on

emission of regulated dangerous substances into indoor air has used
existing experience from emission testing.

 
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14.8 ROLE OF TECHNOLOGY IN ENVIRONMENTAL

MANAGEMENT

Information technology (IT) has tremendous potential in the field of

environmental education, economics, politics or culture. Development of
internet facilities, world wide web, geographical information system (GIS)
and information through satellites has generated a wealth of up-to-date
information on various aspect of the environment. Technology in the form
of Geographic Information System (GIS), Global position system (GPS)
and Remote sensing have a key role to play in environmental
management.

Satellite imageries provide us actual information about various physical

and biological resources and also to some extent about their state of
degradation in a digital form through remote sensing. We are able to
gather digital information on environmental aspect like water logging,
desertification, deforestation, urban sprawl, river and canal network,
mineral and energy reserves and so on.

14.9 WHAT IS GIS?

Geographical Information System (GIS) has proved to be a very effective

tool in environmental management. “GIS is a Technique of superimposing
various thematic maps using digital data on a large number of inter-
related or interdependent aspects.” Several useful softwares have been
developed for working in the field of GIS. Different thematic maps
containing digital information on a number of aspects like water
resources, soil type, forest land, cropland or grassland etc. are
superimposed in a layered form in computer using softwares.

 
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“GIS is computer system that can hold and use data describing places on
the Earth’s surface.” Another definition gives more idea of what GIS can
do as well as what they are, “GIS is a set of tools for collecting, storing,
retrieving at will, transforming and displaying spatial data from the real
world for set of purposes.” The Department of Environment define GIS as
a system for computing, storing, checking, integrating, manipulating,
analysing and displaying data which is spatially related to the Earth.

A GIS helps you to answer questions and solve problems by looking at

your data in a way that is quickly understood and easily shared. GIS
technology can be integrated into any enterprises information system
framework.

14.9 USES OF GIS :

a) Banking : Financial analyst employ GIS for targeting their markets by

visualizing service needs. Companies including metropolitan Life and
Bank rely on GIS software to help them improve operational excellence
and profitability.

b) Insurance : Many insurance companies have made GIS a central

component of their business, using it to visualize, analyze, and distribute
risk. Insurance Companies use GIS software for portfolio risk
management.

c) Retail Business : Business maintain information about sales,

customers, inventory, demographic profiles, and mailing lists, all of which
have geographic locations. Therefore, business managers, marketing
strategists, financial analyst, and professional planners increasingly rely
on GIS to organise, analyze, and present their business data. eg. Smaller
companies, such as ultra Marine kayaking of Santacruz, California, find
GIS useful and cost-effective for creating accurate and attractive maps for
promotional materials.

 
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d) Vegetation : GIS is ideal for mapping and inventorying vegetation

across landscape and to better understand threatened and endangered
species inventories for scientific and managerial applications. Vegetation
map is used to estimate forestry species stocks and monitor land clearing
and subsistence agriculture.

e) Agriculture : GIS provides the analytical capabilities that form the hub
of a successful precision agriculture system. GIS let farmers perform site
specific spatial analyses of agronomic data. A farmer uses GIS to forecast
crop yields and determine fertilizer spread.

f) Forestry : GIS is used as a key component in managing its timber

resources and maintaining sustainable forest management. GIS is also
used for applications as drivers as land valuation, timber market analysis,
harvest route planning and landscape visualization.

g) Mining : Terrain and ore body modeling, exploration, drilling, mine

planning, reclamation and rehabilitation are important digital mapping
elements in mining. The Kaiser Jamaica Bauxite Company creates GIS
based mine planning and operations applications.

h) Oil and Gas : Where to drill, route a pipe line, or build a refinery are all
questions that rely heavily on an understanding of geography. Chevron
relies on GIS for resources analysis.

In short, a GIS gives you the power to integrate information from different
sources, visualize simulations of post implementation scenario, solve
complex, spatial problems, present ideas and consider alternative solution
as well as, create meaningful thematic maps like never before.

Check your Progress : -

1. What is GIS?

2. How the GIS is used in various fields?

 
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14.9.2 Remote Sensing

In simplest terms, a satellite can be defined as a space-borne remote

sensing platform. Instead of cameras, the satellites carry sensors that
records the signature of the ground in the form of digital numbers. These
digital numbers can be used to produce the most important remote
sensing product of satellites imagery Imagery is a printed version of the
digital data supplied by a satellite to the ground control station and it
shows the details of the ground by means of colours and tones.

Generally, the imageries do not show the ground objects like a

photographs and the colours used in imageries do not conform to the
ground objects. This is primarily due to the facts that colours that one
sees are formed by the reflected electromagnetic radiation only in the
visible band and the imageries are prepared by recording the signature of
the ground objects on the basis of invisible energy reflected by them.
Hence the imageries have false colours and they are often referred to as
FCCs (False Colour Composites)

Observations of the Earth from space is usually termed as remote sensing

and satellite used for the purpose are known as remote sensing satellites.
These satellites are usually deployed, in what is known as sun
synchronous polar orbit at height of 800 to 1000 km. It is called a polar
orbit because it passes over both the polar regions of the Earth in a
North-South direction.

Data from India Remote Sensing Satellite finds application in various

areas of resources, survey and management under the National Natural
Resources Management System (NNRMs).

Important areas of application where remote sensing data serve useful

purpose as under :-

 
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1) Preharvest crop acreage and production estimation of major crops,

covering major parts of the country are being provided to the Department
of Agriculture.

2) Drought monitoring and assessment based on vegetation condition,

drought reports are being generated at the district level for ten drought -
prone states.

3) Flood risk zone mapping and flood damage assessment is being

carried out for all major river basins. This information is being provided to
Flood Control Boards, Control water commission and State Irrigation
Departments toward taking up flood control or relief measures.

4) Hydro-geomorphologic maps for locating underground water resources

for drilling wells. These maps are being used by the Ministry of Rural
Development, State public Health Engineering Department and State
Groundwater Departments toward drinking - water resources.

5) Irrigation command area status monitoring in Uttar Pradesh, Karnataka,

and Andhra Pradesh. This information is provided to Ministry of water
Resources toward optimising the use of water for irrigation.

6) Land use and land cover mapping has been carried out for all the
states. The data has been provided to planning commission towards
agro-climate based regional planning.

7) Urban planning - In urban planning many new application is carried out

with the help of satellite data. This helps to study urban sprawl, structural
plans for cities, guide maps for cities like Delhi, possible routes for
express highway and townships are carried out.

8) Survey based on remote sensing data is used for forest mapping to

monitor forest cover changes by the forest Survey of India.

 
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9) Environmental Impact analysis - satellite remote sensing data has been

used to assess the impact of mining, thermal power station, industries and
urbanisation on the environment. Khudremukh iron mining, chemical
industries in Karnataka, mining in Goa, and thermal power station in
Madhya Pradesh are assessed through remote sensing.

10) Coastal Studies : Coastal Zone Maps for the entire country gives
information on the status of wetlands estuaries, as well as in identify
prospective sites for aquaculture.

14.9.3 Global Positioning System (G. P.S.)

The Global Positioning System (G.P.S.) is a Satellite based navigation

system made up of a network of 24 satellites placed in the orbit by the
U.S. Defense. G.P.S. work in any weather conditions, anywhere in the
world, 24 hours day. It is specially designed to determine its location
anywhere on the earth.

The Global Positioning System (G.P.S.) is a US Spaced based navigation

system that provides reliable positioning, navigation and timing services to
civilian users on a continuous worldwide basis- freely available to all. For
anyone with a GPS receiver, the system will provide location and time.

The GPS is made up of three parts (a) Satellites orbiting the earth. (b)
Control and monitoring stations on the earth. and (c) the GPS receivers
owned by the users. Each GPS receiver provides three dimensional
location. (latitude, longitude and altitude) plus time. Individuals can use
GPS handsets that are readily available through commercial retailers.
With the help of GPS receivers, users can accurately locate where they
are and easily navigate to where they want to go, whether walking,
driving, flying or boating. GPS has become a mainstay of transportation
system worldwide providing navigation for aviation, ground and maritime
operations. Disaster reliefs and emergency services depend upon GPS
for location and timing.

 
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Satellites and ground-based receivers transmit similarly coded radio

signals, so that the time delay between transmission and receipt of the
signals gives the distance between satellite and the receiver. If a receiver
can pick up signals from three or four satellites trigonometry is used to
calculate the location and height of the receiver. A GPS user will see a
position ‘fix’ displayed on the receiver. GPS is finding a wide range of
applications, varying from navigation to mapping and surveying.

Application of GPS

Recent development in portable computing and mobile communications

have opened up to a whole new era of application for GPS. GPS satellite
are in medium earth orbit, transmitting signals allowing GPS receivers to
determine the receiver’s location, speed and direction.

GPS has a variety of application on land, at sea and in the air. The most
common airborne applications, is navigation by general aviation and
commercial aircraft. At sea GPS is used for navigation by recreational
boaters, commercial fisherman and professional mariners.

Land based application are more diverse. The scientific community uses
GPS for its precision timing capability and position eg. In military GPS
allows the accurate targeting of various military weapons, including cruise
missiles and precision guided ammunitions. Surveyors use GPS for cost
saving by reducing set up time at the survey site and provides accuracy.
In the field of agriculture GSP is very useful for controlled traffic and row
crop operations and during spraying.

Recreational uses GPS for number of their activities like hikers, hunters,
snowmobilers, mountain bikers, bicyclist, skydiving etc. GPS is now
commonly used in automobiles. More sophisticated system that shows
your position on a street map are also available. This system helps the
driver to keep track of his position / location and suggest the best route to
follow to reach a designated location.

 
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Everyday activities such as banking, mobile phone geologist, GIS,

emergency and location-based services, marketing and others performed
their work more efficiently safely, economically and accurately using the
free and open GPS signals.

Thus, the Remote sensing, GIS, GPS, plays key role in resource
mapping, environmental conservation, environmental management,
planning and Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA)

14.10 CARBAN TRADING, CARBAN CREDIT AND

CARBON BANK.

Carbon Trading is a commercial activity that has came into existence after
Kyoto Protocol in 1997. It is a tool protect our mother earth. The harmful
Greenhouse Gases like carbon dioxide & monoxide, methane nitrous
oxide, hydrofluoric carbon etc. are emitted. From various industries &
other units has increased all over the world. Hence the concept of carbon
Trading, carbon credit has came into existence. It is related to an
incentives given to those industries or business units who emit less
amount of such. GHGs & penalizing those units who are emitting excess
amount of GHGs. So that in future overall percentage of carbon in the
atmosphere will reduce and thereby the problem of global warning can be
brought under control.

14.10.1 Kyote Protocol :

UNO (United National Organisation) has taken an initiative to fix some
quota for each country in the world to emit carbon. This decision was
taken at Kyoto in Japan. This Kyoto protocol was signed on 11th
December 1997 and came into force from 16th December 2005.
The Kyoto protocol aims to tackle global warming problem by setting a
target levels for nations to reduce GHGs emission worldwide. Under the
protocol initial target is to reduce GHGs. emission to 5.2% below the level
of 1990 as a base year, within the commitment period of 2008-2012. The
protocol covered 174 countries globally.

 
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14.10.2 Carbon Credit :

Carbon credit as defined by Kyoto protocol is “one metric tonne of carbon
emitted by burning of fossil fuels.” The other GHGs are converted into
equivalent tonnes of Co2 which is considered as the standard of trading.
The central authority has fixed the limit of the amount of GHGs that can
be emitted into the atmosphere. This limit or quota is a credit allotted to all
countries.

14.10.3 Illustration of carbon credit and carbon Debit :-

According to Kyoto protocol all the countries has to reduce carbon
emission by 5.2% than the standard year 1990. Suppose all the countries
are allowed to emit 1000 units of carbon & equivalent GHGs. If a
developing country can able to reduce. Carbon emission as 5.2% that is
upto 948 units and a developed country can not able to reduce, but it’s
Carbon emission has increased to 1052 units. Then in such case a
developed country will be having 52 units of debit balance in its pollution
accounts. Now the developing country can able to transfer it 52 units
carbon balance into a developed countries debit balance. And hence
overall percentage of carbon emitted by both the countries will be
balanced to 2000 units.

This transfer of carbon units from developing to developed country will be

done for some monetary consideration (6 to 12 Euro / tonne of Co2) as
decided by world bank hence it is referred as carbon and Trading.

At present many companies are investing in wind mills, Biodiesel, Biogas,

solar energy & such other alternative non-polluting sources of energy and
trying to reduce Co2 emission to earn carbon credits. Almost all
industrialized countries are huge buyers of carbon credit and all
developing countries, which has less industrial development at present
are suppliers of carbon credit. Japan is the largest buyer of carbon credit.
Where as countries like India, Brazil are amongst the largest suppliers of
Carbon credit.

 
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Check your Progress :-

1. What is carbon credit? How is calculated?

14.10.4 Carbon Trading and Carbon Bank :

Carbon Trading gives the platform where the buyers & sellers of Carbon
do their trade with credit and/or debit of polluting accounts with carbon
Bank in Briton, Europe & in Indian metro cities.

Under the clean Development Mechanism (CDM) of Kyoto protocol the

trading of polluting gases credit & debit exchanges are necessary. For
such exchanges the Banks have been established. These banks has
entered in this upcoming business of exchanging carbon at
international level are known as Carbon Banks.

Many companies in India are now doing a new form of trading business,
which is related to polluting gases. Usually, banks come into the picture in
this kind of trading as they keep the records of debit & credit of polluting
accounts.

The volume of carbon trade is increasing at a faster rate. According to

estimates made by the world Bank’s Carbon Finance Unit, the volume of
carbon trade had shown 240% increase in 2005-2006 over the previous
years. The world Bank has launched Prototype Carbon Fund (PCF) in
1999. This has brought together the least - developed countries to earn
maximum benefit from the carbon market and more developed countries
to penalize them for their more carbon emission and force such countries
to use more eco-friendly technologies.

14.10.5 Prices of Carbon Trading :

Prices of carbon credit trading vary in the range of Euro six to Euro 12 per
tonnes of Co2. An estimate suggests that in 2004, 107 million tonnes of
Go2 was exchanged through it worldwide. Between 2005-2007, the world
Bank Group financed more than $ 1.5 billion worth of GHG emitting from
oil, gas & coal projects.

 
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Moran Stanley has created carbon bank to assist clients. It relies on the
monitoring standards of the Greenhouse Gas protocol Initiative used by
European Union’s Emissions Trading Scheme. Further the carbon bank
will provide clients with carbon Zero certificates. For each tonne of Carbon
dioxide emission saved by the company in the developing world, it earns
a certificate from UN, which is called “ Certified Emissions Reduction”
(CER).

There are several other banks who are also transacting carbon credits
such as Barclay bank is in UK, Bank of America - Merrill Lynch city,
Deutsche Bank, Fortis Bank of Motherlands, Goldman scachs, Nvnwa &
society general are all participating in the carbon Market.

Check your Progress :-

1. Explain the role of carbon bank in carbon trading.

14.10.6 Natural Carbon Banks :

Carbon emission from deforestation, by burning fossil fuels, changes in

land use & other human activities are increasing. But the earth’s ability of
soak up or fix the carbon is decreasing. As everybody knows trees /
Plants absorbs maximum carbon from
atmosphere. Hence reforestation is a way to restore the carbon balance.

If the quick growing native trees be planted and such types of trees
should not be logged or burned, then the carbon will be fixed within the
wood itself. Thus the plants or vegetation will act as a natural carbon
bank.

Secondly, it has been proved by US scientist that soil is excellent Carbon

Bank. USA Department of Agriculture Scientists have developed the first
national estimate of how much carbon US farms & grazing land soils are
currently storing. It has accounted to 20 million Metric tonnes of Carbon
per year. This estimate shows that soils are carbon bank or sink that keep
more carbon dioxide out of the atmosphere.

 
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Check your Progress :-

1. Write note on natural carbon banks.

14.10.7 Attempts of India to earn Carbon Credit.

Carbon Trading has given wide opportunities to Indian Companies to earn

Certified Emissions Reduction (CER) certificate for one tonne of carbon
emission reduction, by adopting energy saving technologies several
Indian companies are adopting clean Development Mechanism (CDM)
programmes, which will give them CER in return. Such companies are
Chennai petroleum, Jaypee Associates, Gujrat Fluro chemicals etc.

In India recently, MCE (Multi Commodity Exchange) has announced

carbon trading Exchange with license agreement from Chicago Climate
exchange (CCE). Like the usual stock exchange, carbon credits have all
spot transactions, forward settlement & options of trading. On the pattern
of Morgan Stanley Carbon Bank, the carbon banks can be setup in Indian
metro cities.

Even at state and individual levels many attempts are been made has
India is earning. 4.64 lakh carbon credit. eg.

1) DMRC (Delhi Metro Rail Corporation) has already claimed over 40,000
carbon credits for using innovative breaking system that generates
electricity, thereby reducing travelling cost.

2) Gadhia Solar, a company has listed its solar cooking systems for
claiming carbon credits.

3) The Municipal Corporation of Delhi has projects for generating power

from landfill sites at Ghaziapur & Bhalswa which is giving 1.5 lakh carbon
credits every year to them.

 
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5) Maharashtra Government has proposed new Carbon Credit Policy

(CCP). It will penalize industries who are cutting trees and will help
farmers to earn, from their plantations. The Industries has to
“adopt” the green zones developed by farmers so that farmers will
even get sufficient source of Income.

14.10 LET US SUM UP

The Present world is undergoing through tremendous environmental

changes, which are harmful to all living organisms. The root cause for
these changes is increasing human activities. Hence it is our duty to find
out some solutions to reduce environmental. Problems and even control it
through the use of different modern technologies like GIS, GPS Remote
sensing and fixing some equal standards at international level. IT is also
necessarily to give incentives to those countries who are using
environmental friendly technology to reduce the environmental problems.
The concept of carbon trading is gaining importance and some
developing countries are earning foreign exchange to balance their
balance of payment.

14.12 GLOSSARY

EIA : Environmental Impact Assessment.

ISO : International Standards Organisation.

QSS : Quality System standards.

EMS : Environmental Management Systems

IPM : Indoor Pollution Monitoring.

VOCs : Volatile organic compounds.

GIS : Geographic Information systems.

GPS : Global positioning systems.

RS : Remote Sensing

Co2 : Carbon dioxide

 
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GHGs : Green House Gases

CDM : Clean Development Mechanism.

CER : Certified Emission Reduction

PCF : Prototype Carbon Fund

CCP : Carbon Credit Policy.

14.13 UNIT END EXERCISES

1 What is ISO? Explain its features.

2 Explain the role of ISO 14000 in monitory environment & business.

3 Briefly explain the concept of carbon trade and role of Kyoto

Protocol in it.

4 What is the Role of Carbon Bank in Carbon trading in the world.

5 Explain the role of technology with reference to GIS & GPS in

environmental management.

6 Write short notes on the following.

a) Environmental Impact Assessment

b) Environment statement.

c) ISO 16000

d) Uses of Remote Sensing in environmental management.

e) Carbon Credit.

f) Natural carbon Bank.

g) India - a largest carbon credit seller.