Environmental Science

Syllabus
Unit 1: Introduction to environmental studies
Unit 2: Ecosystems
Unit 3: Natural Resources
Unit 4: Biodiversity and its conservation
Unit 5: Environmental Pollution
Unit 6: Environmental Policies & Practices
 GLOBAL WARMING
Gradual increase in the overall temperature of the
earth's atmosphere due to the high concentrations of
carbon dioxide, CFCs, methane, other pollutants
generally attributed to the greenhouse effect. Over the
past 50 years, the average global temperature has
increased at the fastest rate in recorded history.
In other words we can say that global warming is the
process that causes the Earth's temperature to rise and
makes the Earth warmer. Humans play a large role in
the increase in the Earth's temperature.
 CLIMATE CHANGE

Climate change is a change in the average weather of a

region. This could be a change in a region's average
annual rainfal or it could be a change in a city's average
temperature for a given month or season. Climate
change is also a change in Earth's overall climate
because of rising average temperature of Earth.
Climate change is an environmental problem that has
experienced in last couple of decades. It occurs due to
rise in temperature of atmosphere because of green
house gas emissions due to the burning of fossil fuels
in industries, vehicles etc.

Climate change has various harmful effects such as

melting of polar ice, change in seasons, occurrence of
new diseases, frequent occurrence of floods/droughts
and change in overall weather scenario.
 OZONE LAYER DEPLETION
Ozone layer is present in the earth‟s atmosphere
(stratosphere) which contains 90% of atmospheric ozone
(O3). The ozone layer is found in the lower portion of the
stratosphere from about 20 to 30 km above earth‟s
surface. Its thickness varies seasonal and geographical.
The ozone layer forms by conversion of atmospheric
oxygen into ozone (O3), this process is called as
Chapman cycle. The oxygen gets photocatalyzed by
U.V.rays to form oxygen radical. The oxygen radical then
react with molecular oxygen and forms ozone molecule.
 ACID RAIN
It occurs due to the presence of certain pollutants in
the atmosphere. Acid rain can be caused due to
combustion of fossil fuels or erupting volcanoes or
rotting vegetation which release sulphur dioxide and
nitrogen oxides into the atmosphere.
Acid rain is a known environmental problem that can
have serious effect on human health, wildlife,
agriculture and aquatic species.
The elevated levels of hydrogen ions (i. e. low pH) rain
can have harmful effects on plants, aquatic animals,
and infrastructure.
Acid rain is caused by emissions of sulphur dioxide
and nitrogen oxide, which react with the water
molecules in the atmosphere to produce acids.

Nitrogen oxides can also be produced naturally by
lightning strikes and sulphur dioxide is produce by
volcanic eruptions. The chemicals in acid rain can
cause paint to peel, corrosion of steel structures, and
erosion of stone statues.
 ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS

THE ENVIRONMENT (PROTECTION) ACT, 1986

AIR (PREVENTION AND CONTROL OF
POLLUTION) ACT, 1981
THE WATER (PREVENTION & CONTROL OF
POLLUTION) ACT, 1974
THE WILDLIFE (PROTECTION) ACT, 1972
THE FOREST (CONSERVATION) ACT, 1980
 International agreements
MONTREAL PROTOCOL :
The Montreal Protocol is an international treaty
designed to protect the ozone layer by phasing out the
production of numerous substances believed to be
responsible for ozone depletion.
The treaty was opened for signature on September 16,
1987, and entered into force on January 1, 1989,
followed by a first meeting in Helsinki, May 1989.
Montreal Protocol adopted in 1987 when 191 countries
signed the Montreal Protocol.
 KYOTO PROTOCOL
Kyoto Protocol is a protocol to the United Nations
Framework Convention on Climate Change
(UNFCCC), aimed to fight with global warming.
The UNFCCC is an international environmental treaty
with the goal of achieving the "stabilization of
greenhouse gas concentrations in the atmosphere at a
level that would prevent dangerous anthropogenic
interference with the climate system.
The Protocol was initially adopted on 11 December,
1997 in Kyoto, Japan, and came into force on 16
February, 2005. As of September 2011, 191 states have
signed and ratified the protocol.

Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) credits may

be generated from emission reduction projects or from
afforestation and reforestation projects. CDM projects
result in three types of Kyoto units as Certified
emission reductions (CERs), Temporary CERs (tCERs),
and Long-term CERs (lCERs).
Thank you