Environmental Management

System
KSGX 6101
Introduction Ecological approach and the
concept of environmental management
Nasrin Aghamohammadi
PhD(Chemical Engineering)
Nasrin@um.edu.my
Acknowledgment

http://www.cura-cms.com/home/1

Week

Lecture/Tutorial/Assignment Topic

Introduction Ecological approach ant the concept of environmental management

Paradigm shift in environmental management

Environment legislation- sources, principles and principles of enforcement and compliance

Environmental planning master plan, structural plan and local plan

Local Agenda 21

Business sector contribution in environmental management

Environmental Impact Assessment

Environmental Management Series - EMS

Test +Environmental Management Series - EMS

10

Environmental Management series Environmental audit

11

Environmental Management series Life cycle analysis

12
13

Environmental Management series Environmental

performance evaluation
Selected issues on environmental problems group work

14

Application of environmental tools in problems solving group work

Evaluation
Test 20%
Seminar+ Assignment 30%
Final Exam 50%

http://www.rgbstock.com/bigphoto/mgyUUae/check+it+1

The Environmental Ecosystems

http://preuniversity.grkraj.org/html/12_ENVIRONMENTAL_BIOLOGY.htm

OBJECTIVES:
i. To understand definitions of ecology and microbiology in
order to apply the elements for
environmental
management systems
ii.To apply the critical thinking and problem solving based on
understanding the hydrologic and biogeochemical cycles
in the Environment

CONTENTS
a) Terms & definition in ecosystem , microbiology & Ecology
b) Constituents f Ecosystems
1.Structural Components
i) Biotic components
ii) Abiotic components
2.Functional Components
c) Biomass / Bioenergy
Biomass
Bioenergy
d) Trophic Levels and Ecological Pyramids
e)Food Chains/Food Webs

CONTENTS
f) The bio-geo-chemical cycles
The carbon cycle
The nitrogen cycle
The sulphur cycle
The phosphorus cycle
g)The hydrologic cycle
Energy cycle
a)Terrestrial ecosystems:
b)Aquatic ecosystems
Pond Ecosystem:
Marine Ecosystems
Forest Ecosystem
Desert Ecosystem
Grassland Ecosystem

Ecolosystem & Microbiology

http://www.buzzle.com/articles/biology-terms-glossary-of-biology-terms-and-definitions.html

Slide No. 2

Terms & definitions:

Environment - The sum total of all surroundings of a
living organism, including natural forces and other living
things, which provide conditions for development and
growth as well as of danger and damage.
Ecosystem The term ecosystem refers to the combined
physical and biological components of an environment.
These organisms form complex sets of relationships and
function as a unit as they interact with their physical
environment (WHO)

Terms & definitions:

Biosphere - Shallow layer that extends to approximately 20
km from the bottom of the ocean to the highest point in the
atmosphere in which life can survive.

http://cde.nwc.edu/SCI2108/course_documents/earth_moon/earth/earth_science/biosphere/biosphere.htm

Microorganisms

http://www.astrobio.net/exclusive/302/the-tree-of-life-cold-start

A microbial degradation network

The network indicates that oil biodegradation involves more
biological components than just the microorganisms that directly
attack oil (the primary oil degraders) and shows that the primary oil
degraders interact with these components.
Oil-degrading bacteria are shown in green.
Solid arrows indicate material fluxes, and broken arrows indicate
direct interactions (for example, lysis by phage and predation by
protozoa). For simplicity, only one function is assigned to a
microorganism in this schema. However, it should be noted that a
microorganism can have more than one function or ability (for
example, to weather minerals to release phosphate (P), and to
degrade oil). It should also be noted that primary oil degraders need
to compete with other microorganisms for limiting nutrients (such
as P) and that non-oil-degrading microorganisms (shown in yellow)
can be affected by metabolites and other compounds that are
released by oil-degrading bacteria and vice versa (Ian M. Head et al.,
Nature 2006)

Microorganisms

Slide No. 8
http://www.nature.com/nrmicro/journal/v4/n3/fig_tab/nrmicro1348_F4.html

Introduction to Ecology
Ecology Is the study of how organisms interact with their living
(biotic) environment of other organisms and their nonliving ( abiotic)
environment of soil, water, other forms of matter, and energy mostly
from the sun.
Connection in Nature
The goal of ecology is to understand the principles of operation of
natural systems and to predict their responses to change.

What ecology is not?

Ecology is not environmentalism, nor deep ecology. Ecology is science,
based on biological, physical and chemical principles, and should be
value-free.
Environmentalism advocates for certain actions and policy positions.
Slide No. 4

Why study ecology?

Curiosity How does the world around us work? How are we shaped
by our surroundings?
Responsibility How do our actions change our environment? How do
we minimize the detrimental effects of our actions?
Overfishing, habitat destruction, loss of biodiversity,
climate change.
Nature as a guide The living world has been around much longer
than we have and has solved many problems with creative
solutions. Ecological systems are models for sustainability. How can
we feed our growing population? Where will we live?
Sustainability A property of human society in which ecosystems
(including humans) are managed such that the conditions
supporting present day life on earth can continue. Ecology helps us
understand complex problems.

What are the related issues?

Urbanization
Biodiversity loss
Land degradation and desertification
Freshwater ecosystems
Global environmental change

How to study ecology?

What kinds of experiments do ecologists perform?
Observations Go into the field and see whats happening
Microcosms Isolate a portion, limit factors, manipulate
conditions.
Mathematical models Describe ecosystems interactions
as equations.
Start with energy flows
At the individual level, how do organisms make a living?
At the ecosystem level, how does energy move around?

How to study ecology?

Move on to nutrients
How does nutrient availability limit organism growth?
On an ecosystem and global scale, how do organisms fit in
to global nutrient cycles?
Then focus on populations and communities
Numerical models of the growth of individual
populations
Then apply these to model competition between
populations for the same resources
Metrics of species diversity and responses of
communities to changes

Why do ecosystems matter for human health?

Ecosystem services are the benefits that people obtain from
ecosystems.
From the availability of adequate food and water, to disease
regulation of vectors, pests, and pathogens, human health and wellbeing depends on these services and conditions from the natural
environment. Biodiversity underlies all ecosystem services.
The causal links between environmental change and human health
are complex because they are often indirect, displaced in space and
time, and dependent on a number of modifying forces.
Significant direct human health impacts can occur if ecosystem
services are no longer adequate to meet social needs.
Indirectly, changes in ecosystem services affect livelihoods, income,
local migration and, on occasion, may even cause political conflict.

CONSTITUENTS OF ECOSYSTEMS:
Every ecosystem, big or small, is always made up of two major
components. They are structural components and functional components.
1. STRUCTURAL COMPONENTS:
Structural components consist of living organisms and non-living
structures. The former is called biotic and the latter is called abiotic. They
exist together interact with each other in building up or reclaiming the
system.
i) Biotic components: All living organisms from plants to animals are
included under biotic structural elements. However the biotic components
vary from system to system.
ii) Abiotic components: Non living components of the biosphere
They are the inert matter found on earth. Soil and its constituents, water
and its constituents, temperature of the atmosphere, rainfall, atmospheric
moisture, gases, wind, light, etc, all form abiotic contents.

CONSTITUENTS OF ECOSYSTEMS:
2. FUNCTIONAL COMPONENTS:
The functional components are mainly the processes involved in the flow
of energy (solar energy), from abiotic components (including nutrients)
into biotic components (as biomass), from one biotic to another biotic
system and lastly from biotic back to abiotic system.

The success of an ecosystem mainly depends upon the longevity (or half
life) of the bioenergy retained within the biomass.
The half life of the bioenergy in a biomass in turn is controlled by the rate
of producers activity, the rate of consumers activity, the rate of
detritivores activity and rate at which these three interact with each other.

CONSTITUENTS OF ECOSYSTEMS:
2. FUNCTIONAL COMPONENTS

The major functional process of an ecosystem is autotrophic mechanisms,

by which Solar energy is converted into chemical energy as the main capital
Using such energy and other abiotic ingredients biomass is built up by
various respiratory, and intermediary metabolic process, responsible for
the growth of biomass.
Lastly the biomass (after death) is converted by various oxidative processes
into basic abiotic ingredients and there is a net loss of energy in the form of
heat.
All bio-geo- chemical cycles arc involved in this. In all these energy
transformation, there is a loss of energy in one or the other form; thus they
obey the second law of thermodynamics. It is the functional process that
ultimately determines the success of biosystem in an ecosystem.

BIOMASS / BIOENERGY:
Biomass:
Living organisms are made up of various organic compounds like
carbohydrates, fats, proteins, etc.
All of them contain energy in their chemical bonds. The total organic
matter (usually dry weight) of all living organism found in any given
area, at a given time, is called biomass. The production and the ability
to produce biomass depend upon the structural and functional
components of an ecosystem.
Bioenergy: The chemical energy present in the organic materials found
in biomass is called Bioenergy. It has been estimated that one gram
molecular weight of the organic matter of biomass (dry wt) contains
about 42 K. Calories of energy. Such energy is called Bioenergy.

TROPHIC LEVELS AND ECOLOGICAL PYRAMIDS

All the existing biotic components in any ecosystem can
be grouped into:
Producers,
Consumers and
Detritivores ( decomposers) (an animal that feeds on
dead organic material)
Producers may be primary or secondary.
Similarly the consumers can be grouped into primary,
secondary and tertiary kinds.
Each of them can be quantified in terms of number,
biomass or energy. Such grouping is called Trophs and
relationally they can be organized into trophic levels.

Trophic Levels.

http://preuniversity.grkraj.org/html/12_ENVIRONMENTAL_BIOLOGY.htm

http://preuniversity.grkraj.org/html/12_ENVIRONMENTAL_BIOLOGY.htm

FOOD CHAINS/FOOD WEBS

The plant eating animals are called as herbivores and they act as primary
consumers.
Linear food chain: Organisms are arranged in the order of ' who eats
whom. In all these cases, the starting point is the producer.
Phytoplankton - Larvae - Fishes - Whales.
Food Web: Grass or its products are eaten by grasshoppers, mice, rabbits,
deer, goats, etc. The grasshopper is eaten by lizards or frogs. Frogs are
eaten by snakes or hawks. Similarly mice can be eaten by snakes or foxes.
Foxes can be eaten by tigers or lions. This system is not linear but
interlinked and forms a kind of network called Food web.

Biological Questions
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.

What factor, including chemical elements (necessary for life), might be

limiting abundance and growth?
What toxic chemical element might be present that is limiting abundance
and growth?
What can people do to improve the production of a desired biological
resource?
What are sources of chemical elements required for life, and how might
we make these more readily available?
What problems occur when an element is too abundant, as in the case of
Lake Washington?

Source: Environment Science: Earth as living plant, Daniel: Edward A. Keller 2nd ed

THE HYDROLOGIC CYCLE

Flows and cycles

As well as the flow of energy through a food chain, other flows
and cycles can be found within ecosystems. Ecosystems have
water cycles and nutrient cycles .
So when an animal eats another animal or a plant it not only
obtains that organism's energy, but its water and nutrients as
well.
Different nutrients are passed around an ecosystem as
organisms consume other biotic and abiotic factors. The
important nutrients are carbon, nitrogen, Sulphur and
Phosphorous .

Water cycle Through the Biosphere

The water cycle describes how water moves from the
ocean, to the atmosphere (evaporation), to land (rain) and
back to the ocean (rivers). On the way the water will be
intercepted by plants and animals, both of which need
water to survive.
Plants need water for photosynthesis.
Animals use water to remove toxins and stay cool (sweat)
Both plants and animals give off water as a by-product of
respiration.
Animals drink water, but can also obtain water by
consuming plants and animals that have stored water.
The diagram shows the continuous cycle of water
between the ocean, the atmosphere and the land.

Global Warming
Ice and Snow

http://shrdocs.com/presentations/29411/index.html

The Aquatic Ecosystem

O2

CO2

O2
O2 CO2
Bacteria
and fungi

Nutrients C, P, N

Phytoplankton
algae and
large rooted
plants

O2

CO2

Man

CO2

Zooplanktons
and
Benthos*

Fish

Producers
Decay

Decomposers

* Prof Nik Meriam Sulaiman

Organic waste and

dead organisms
Detrivores

Benthos*
Cant swim
At the bottom of pond
Eaten by fish
Scavengers

Live on organic wastes

Hydrological Questions

1.

2.

What determines whether is body of water will be

biologically productive?
When a body of water becomes polluted, how can we alter
the biogeochemical cycles that involve the pollutant, to
reduce its level and its effects.

Source: Environment Science: Earth as living plant, Daniel: Edward A. Keller

2nd
Slide No.
22 ed

Geological Questions
1. What physical and chemical processes control the
movement and storage of chemical elements in the
environment?
2. How are chemical elements transferred from the solid
Earth to the water, atmosphere, or life forms?
3. How does the long-term (1,000s of years or longer)
storage of chemical elements in rocks and soils affect
ecosystems at local to global scales?

Source: Environment Science: Earth as living plant, Daniel: Edward A. Keller 2nd ed

THE BIO-GEO-CHEMICAL CYCLES

Flows and cycles

Chemical elements circulate between the organisms and the
environment through pathways comprising the natural cycles,
the most important of which are probably:

The hydrologic cycle

The bio-geo-chemical cycles of:
carbon,
nitrogen,
phosphorus and
sulphur
In the unpolluted natural environment, these cycles operate in
a balanced state with little variation thereby contributing to
the stability of the whole biosphere.

Bio-geo-chemical Cycles
ecosystems contain a wide variety of biotic and
abiotic components and they exhibit one or the
other functions. Using various minerals nutrients,
water, CO2, nitrogen, light energy, plants build up
the organic matter.
Continuous use of the above said materials
depletes the components from the soil, water and
air in course of time.

Bio-geo-chemical Cycles
Carbon Cycle Through the Biosphere
Consumers use the plant products and during
oxidation they convert some organic matter into CO2
by respiration.

http://preuniversity.grkraj.org/html/12_ENVIRONMENTAL_BIOLOGY.htm

Coal, oil, Carbonate Rocks

Consumers

Producers
Death and wastes
Decomposers

Respiration

Chemical
combination

Combustion

Combustion
Weathering
Volcanic activity

Photosynthesis

Combustion

CO2 Reservoir
AtmosphericAquatic

Respiration

Decomposition

The Carbon Cycle

The Carbon Cycle

CO2 in
Atmosphere

Forest Fires

Slide No.

Carbon Cycle
Carbon store in
The atmosphere

Carbon store in
Land biota, rock, soil
And fossil fuels

Carbon store in
Ocean biota, water
And sediment

Figure (b) Parts of the carbon cycle simplified illustrate the cyclic nature of the movement of carbon.
Source: Modified after G. Laruhert, 1987,La Recherch, IS, pp. 782-783, with some data from R. Flougliton, 1993, Bullelin of the
Ecological Social of America, 74(4), pp.355356.] page 62

Carbon dioxide and Temperature

http://ete.cet.edu/gcc/?/globaltemp_carbon_cycle/

Carbon dioxide and Temperature

http://ete.cet.edu/gcc/?/globaltemp_carbon_cycle/

Bio-geo-chemical Cycles
Nitrogen Cycle Through the Biosphere
Also they release ammonia. etc., back to the soil or
to the atmosphere. The death and decay of the
plants and animals also leads to release of nitrogen,
phosphorus and other components back to the soil.
Thus they enrich the soil.

http://preuniversity.grkraj.org/html/12_ENVIRONMENTAL_BIOLOGY.htm

The Nitrogen Cycle

Atmospheric Nitrogen
Denitrifying bacteria
NO3N2

Electro-chemical
and photochemical
fixation
Nitrate
(NO3)

Denitrifying bacteria
NO3NO2
Nitrate bacteria
NO2NO3

Nitrite bacteria
NH3NO2

Consumers

Denitrifying
bacteria
NO3NH3

Industrial
fixation

Nitrogen
fixing
Bacteria

Herbivores

Producers

Decay and wastes

Amino acids
Urea Organic residues
Ammonifying bacteria

Ammonia

Decomposers

Nitrogen
Atmosphere

Nitrogen
Oxide From
Burning Fuel

Electrical
Storm

in

Nitrogen Cycle Through the Biosphere

Nitrogen Atomic # 7 14.0067 g mol 1 B.P. 195.8C
a. Role in biology
N is an essential component of proteins, nucleic acids and other
cellular constituents
b.Reservoirs - 79% of the atmosphere is N2 gas. The N=N triple bond
is relatively difficult to break ,requires special conditions. As a
result most ecosystems are N-limited. N2 dissolves in water, cycles
through air, water and living tissue.

Slide
SlideNo.
No.11
3
Slide No. 3

Nitrogen Cycle Through the Biosphere

b.Nitrogen Fixation
Abiotic: lightning (very high T and P) 107 metric tons yr-1 ~ 5-8% of
total annual N fixation.
(weathering of rocks is an insignificant
source)
Biotic: Nitrogen fixation by microbes, (prokaryotic bacteria) typically
either free-living azobacter or rhizobium living symbiotically with
plants (such as legumes). Total N fixed by biological processes is
approx. 1.75 x108 metric tons yr-1
Industrial: The Haber-Bosch process (1909) high P and relatively
high T, uses Iron as a catalyst to convert N2 to ammonia (usually
further processed to urea and ammonium nitrate (NH4NO3) still
the cheapest means of industrial N fixation. 5x107 metric tons yr-1
Combustion Side Effect: High T and P oxidizes N2 to Nox 2x107
metric tons yr-1
Since 1940s amount of N available for uptake has more than
doubled. Anthropogenic N inputs are now equal to biological
fixation. Sources are fertilizers, legume crops, atm deposition,
sewage, deforestation, draining of wetland
Slide
SlideNo.
No.11
3
Slide No. 3

Effects of increased N loading

Effects of Increased N loading:

Eutrophication in aquatic systems, coastal algal blooms and

Dead Zone, fish kills, increased turbidity, selective pressures
in terrestrial systems favoring species-poor grasslands and
forests
Nitrate MCL 10mg L-1
Nitric oxide precursor of acid rain and smog
Nitrous oxide long lived greenhouse gas that can trap 200
times as much heat as CO2

Sulphur Cycle

Human Impacts of Sulphur Emissions

The Sulphur Cycle

SO3

Plant uptake

Sulphur
containing
organic
matter SH,
etc.
Mineralisation
Oxidation

Precipitation
Reduction

Combustion

Bacterial
emission

Assimilation

Inorganic Sulphates, SO42Reduction

Sulphur S

Sulphides H2S etc.

Oxidation

Reduction

Sea spray

Atmospheric Sulphates,
H2S etc.

Atmospheric SO2

Oxidation

Atmospheric Sulphates,
SO42-

Phosphorus Cycle

Phosphorus Atomic # 15 30.97 g mol 1 B.P. 280C

P is very reactive, does not exist in pure elemental form. In contact
with air, it forms phosphate PO43-. In water, phosphates are
protonated to form HPO42-, H2PO4- and H3PO4.
PO43- orthophosphate, the most simple molecular form of
phosphate, aqueous form under very basic or alkaline conditions
HPO42- : aqueous form under basic or alkaline conditions
H2PO4- : aqueous form under neutral conditions
H3PO4 : aqueous form under very acidic conditions

a. Role in biology
Phosphorus is an essential nutrient for plants and animals in the
form of ions PO43- and HPO42- . It is found in DNA-molecules (it binds
deoxyribose sugars together forming the backbone of the DNA
molecule), ATP and ADP, and lipid cell membranes (phospholipids). P
is also a fundamental to tissues such as bones and teeth.
Slide No. 16

Phosphorus Cycle
Reservoirs
P does not exist in a gaseous state at typical environmental
Temps and Pressures.
Cycles through :
water (DOP and DIP),
soils and sediments (adsorption to mineral surfaces)
organic tissue/humic material.
Phosphorus Sources
sedimentary rocks
some ocean sediments (PO4 is soluble in H2O).
fertilizers and sewage.
Detergents

Phosphorus Cycle
Phosphorus Sinks
uptake of orthophosphate by plants through the roots,
incorporation into plant tissue and heterotroph tissues,
decomposition returns P to water and soils via microbial
mineralization; eventually it is washed out to the oceans, sinks
to the floor (becomes limestone) and is not recycled for
millions of years.

The Phosphorus Cycle

Source: http://fig.cox.miami.edu/Faculty/ Dana/16002_28.html

The Phosphorus Cycle

Phosphates
in sewage

Run Off

Question Time

ENERGY CYCLES

Slide No. 21

Terrestrial ecosystems
A large area dominated by uniform vegetation with other flora and
fauna in an equilibrated, but stable state are generally called
Biomics. But the term biomes cannot to be applied to aquatic
ecosystem because they are considered as higher categories.
Terrestrial ecosystem is further classified according to their three
dimensional structure of the flora, such as:
height of the tall trees,
number of layers of foliage
The main terrestrial ecosystems are
Forest,
Woodlands,
Shrub land,
Grassland,
Scrubland
Desert

Aquatic ecosystems
Aquatic ecosystem is being the largest of all
occupying 75% of the earth area, and also having a uniform
Vegetation over a long period of time, they are considered as higher
category than the terrestrial biomes.
1- pond ecosystem
2-marine ecosystem
3-Forest Ecosystem
4-Dessert Ecosystem
5- Grassland Ecosystem

Energy Flow Through The Ecosystem

http://www.wpclipart.com/energy/informational/energy_cycle.png.html

Carbon and Energy transformations

Energy cycle is a process where by energy from the sun is taken up
by plants which absorbs the energy in their chloroplast. Plants
collect energy from the sun and use carbon dioxide and water in
the process called photosynthesis to produce sugars.

Slide No. 23

Environmental Issue:

Can damaged ecosystems be restored?

Keywords?

References
http://preuniversity.grkraj.org/html/12_ENVIRONMENTAL_BIOL
OGY.htm
http://shrdocs.com/presentations/29411/index.html
Environmental Science, G Tyler Miller and Scott Spoolman 2008