- one is surrounded
- all living and non living things that occur naturally on earth
Biotic: plants, animals, bacteria all are biotic or living factors.
Abiotic: are non living factors that affect living organisms. Environmental factors such as habitat or weather etc are abiotic factors.
Biotic and abiotic factors combine to create a system known as ecosystem. An ecosystem is a community of living and non living things considered as unit. If a single factor is changed perhaps by pollutions or natural phenomena, the whole system could be altered.
Example: human can alter environment through farming or irrigation.
Environmental Science: is an interdisciplinary academic field that integrates physical and biological sciences(including physics, chemistry, biology, geology, soil science and geography). Environmental science provides an integrated, quantitative and interdisciplinary approach to the study of environment.
Environmental Studies: is the field which systematically studies human interaction with the environment. It is a broad interdisciplinary field of study that includes the natural environment, built environment and the sets of relationship between them.
Environmental quality is a set of properties and characteristics of the environment, either generalized or local, as they impinge on human beings and other organisms. It is a measure of the condition of an environment relative to the requirements of one or more species and or to any human need or purpose.Environmental quality is a general term which can refer to varied characteristics that relate to the natural environment as well as the built environment such as air and water purity or pollution, noise and the potential effects which such characteristics may have on physical and mental health caused by human activities.
Environmental management is the process by which environmental health is regulated. It does not involve managing the environment itself, but it is the process of taking steps and behaviors to have a positive effect on the environment. Environmental management involves the wise use of activity and resources to have an impact on the world. Many organizations develop a management plan or system to implement, manage and maintain environmental goals. Management plans for the environment are constructed by many companies and organizations, as taking care of the planet is the responsibility of everybody in every type of profession.
Environmental management is not, as the phrase could suggest, the management of the environment as such, but rather the management of interaction by the modern human societies with, and impact upon the environment. The three main issues that affect managers are those involving politics (networking), programs (projects), and resources (money, facilities, etc.). The need for environmental management can be viewed from a variety of perspectives. A more common philosophy and impetus behind environmental management is the concept of carrying capacity. Simply put, carrying capacity refers to the maximum number of organisms a particular resource can sustain. The concept of carrying capacity, whilst understood by many cultures over history, has its roots in Malthusian theory. Environmental management is therefore not the conservation of the environment solely for the environment's sake, but rather the conservation of the environment for humankind's sake. This element of sustainable exploitation, getting the most out of natural assets, is visible in the EU Water Framework Directive.
Environmental management involves the management of all components of the bio-physical environment, both living (biotic) and non-living (abiotic). This is due to the interconnected and network of relationships amongst all living species and their habitats. The environment also involves the relationships of the human environment, such as the social, cultural and economic environment with the bio-physical environment.
Environmental Management Policies By imposing strict laws and standards, a
government promotes new innovations in cleaner fuels and industrial practices. In addition to regulating industrial practices, government environmental management policies are frequently extended to include the activity of all individuals within a society.
- The changing political climate surrounding the environment has increased the profile of this issue and has resulted in the development of sophisticated software products to manage this process. The demand for environmental management software has expanded significantly in the past 10 to 15 years.
Environmental management system (EMS ) refers to the management of an organization's environmental programs in a comprehensive, systematic, planned and documented manner. It includes the organizational structure, planning and resources for developing, implementing and maintaining policy for environmental protection.
An Environmental Management System (EMS ):
- Serves as a tool to improve environmental performance
- Provides a systematic way of managing an organization’s environmental affairs
- Is the aspect of the organization’s overall management structure that addresses immediate and long-term impacts of its products, services and processes on the environment
- Gives order and consistency for organizations to address environmental concerns through the allocation of resources, assignment of responsibility and ongoing evaluation of practices, procedures and processes.
Environmental Dimensions: Healthy ecosystems provide vital goods and services to humans and other organisms. There are two major ways of reducing negative human impact and enhancing ecosystem services and the first of these is environmental management. This direct approach is based largely on information gained from earth science, environmental science and conservation biology. However, this is management at the end of a long series of indirect causal factors that are initiated by human consumption, so a second approach is through demand management of human resource use.
Management of human consumption of resources is an indirect approach based largely on information gained from economics. Herman Daly has suggested three broad criteria for ecological sustainability: renewable resources should provide a sustainable yield (the rate of harvest should not exceed the rate of regeneration); for non-renewable resources there should be equivalent development of renewable substitutes; waste generation should not exceed the assimilative capacity of the environment.
Hydrosphere
The hydrosphere describes the waters of the Earth. Water of the hydrosphere exists in three states: liquid, solid and gaseous (water vapor). Water occurs in two general chemical conditions, fresh and salty. Water exists on the Earth in various stores, including the: atmosphere, oceans, lakes, rivers, glaciers, snowfields and groundwater. Water moves from one store to another by way of: evaporation, condensation, precipitation, deposition, runoff, infiltration, sublimation, transpiration, and groundwater flow.
Global fresh water stores
· Ground water-25.0%
· Ice-74.5%
· Atmosphere- 0.04%
· Lakes-0.3%
· Rivers-0.03%
· Soil-0.06%
Earth's AtmosphereThe Earth is surrounded by a blanket of air, which we call the atmosphere. It reaches over 560 kilometers (348 miles) from the surface of the Earth, so we are only able to see what occurs fairly close to the ground. Early attempts at studying the nature of the atmosphere used clues from the weather, the beautiful multi-colored sunsets and sunrises, and the twinkling of stars. With the use of sensitive instruments from space, we are able to get a better view of the functioning of our atmosphere. Life on Earth is supported by the atmosphere, solar energy, and our planet's magnetic fields. The atmosphere absorbs the energy from the Sun, recycles water and other chemicals, and works with the electrical and magnetic forces to provide a moderate climate. The atmosphere also protects us from high-energy radiation and the frigid vacuum of space. The envelope of gas surrounding the Earth changes from the ground up. Four distinct layers have been identified using thermal characteristics (temperature changes), chemical composition, movement, and density. TroposphereThe troposphere starts at the Earth's surface and extends 8 to 14.5 kilometers high (5 to 9 miles). This part of the atmosphere is the most dense. As you climb higher in this layer, the temperature drops from about 17 to -52 degrees Celsius. Almost all weather is in this region. The tropopause separates the troposphere from the next layer. The tropopause and the troposphere are known as the lower atmosphere. StratosphereThe stratosphere starts just above the troposphere and extends to 50 kilometers (31 miles) high. Compared to the troposphere, this part of the atmosphere is dry and less dense. The temperature in this region increases gradually to -3 degrees Celsius, due to the absorbtion of ultraviolet radiation. The ozone layer, which absorbs and scatters the solar ultraviolet radiation, is in this layer. Ninety-nine percent of "air" is located in the troposphere and stratosphere. The stratopause separates the stratosphere from the next layer. MesosphereThe mesosphere starts just above the stratosphere and extends to 85 kilometers (53 miles) high. In this region, the temperatures again fall as low as -93 degrees Celsius as you increase in altitude. The chemicals are in an excited state, as they absorb energy from the Sun. The mesopause separates the mesophere from the thermosphere. The regions of the stratosphere and the mesosphere, along with the stratopause and mesopause, are called the middle atmosphere by scientists. This area has been closely studied on the ATLAS Spacelab mission series. ThermosphereThe thermosphere starts just above the mesosphere and extends to 600 kilometers (372 miles) high. The temperatures go up as you increase in altitude due to the Sun's energy. Temperatures in this region can go as high as 1,727 degrees Celsius. Chemical reactions occur much faster here than on the surface of the Earth. This layer is known as the upper atmosphere. The upper and lower layers of the thermosphere will be studied more closely during the Tethered Satellite Mission (TSS-1R). Composition of the AtmosphereThe atmosphere is primarily composed of Nitrogen (N2, 78%), Oxygen (O2, 21%), and Argon (Ar, 1%). A myriad of other very influential components are also present which include the water (H2O, 0 - 7%), "greenhouse" gases or Ozone (O<SUB3< SUB>, 0 - 0.01%), Carbon Dioxide (CO2, 0.01-0.1%), Beyond the AtmosphereThe exosphere starts at the top to the thermosphere and continues until it merges with interplanetary gases, or space. In this region of the atmosphere, Hydrogen and Helium are the prime components and are only present at extremely low densities. Lithosphere: Is the solid inorganic portion of the Earth (composed of rocks, minerals, and elements). It
Inner Core – 1200 km made of solid Fe, Ni. Outer Core – 2250 km made of liquid Fe, Ni.  Mantle – 2900 km made of dense rocks. Crust – 5 – 40 km made of solid lighter rocks. Lithosphere (Crust and MOHO) – 100km thick. MOHO = Mohorovicic Discontinuity
nThere are 3 types of rock. nIgneous rock Rocks formed by solidification of molten magma either beneath (intrusive igneous rock) or at (extrusive igneous rocks) the Earth's surface. nSedimentary rock Rocks formed by the deposition, alteration and/or compression of weathered rock debris, chemical precipitates, or organic sediments. nMetamorphic rock A rock that forms from igneous, sedimentary or other metamorphic rocks through pressure increase, temperature rise, or chemical alteration. | |
