Science SEA

Topic: Our Environment

We have included the following topics:
• Food Chain and Food Web
• Waste Management
• Ozone Depletion
 Food Chain

What is food chain?

So, basically food chain is a
series of organisms which
describes "who eats whom".
Like every organisms is
dependent on other and
every other organism is food
to some other organism. Like
we can take a basic example:
Grass -> Grasshopper -> Frog
-> snake -> vulture
 Trophic Levels
There are levels in food chains which are known as Trophic
Levels. The first trophic level in any type of food chain is
always producer, herbivores are at level 2, and then
carnivore or small carnivore at 3 level. The last tropic level
of every food chain is occupied by scavengers or
decomposers.
Let's take an example:
Trees (producer) -> Deer (Herbivore, Second Trophic Level)
-> Tiger (Carnivore, Third Trophic Level) -> Vulture
(Scavenger, Last Trophic Level)
Food Web
A food web consists of all the
food chain in a one (single)
ecosystem. Every other living
organism is in ecosystem and is
part of different food chains.
Like grass is eaten by mouse,
grasshopper, rabbit, then a
grasshopper can be eaten by frog
or a bird then bird and frog is
eaten by snake then snake is
eaten by vulture just like that
mouse and rabbit can be eaten by
fox or a vulture. So, basically
this is an example of a food web.
 Waste Management
• Waste management is essential
in today’s society. Due to an
increase in population, the
generation of waste is getting
doubled day by day. Moreover,
the increase in waste is affecting
the lives of many people.
• For instance, people living in
slums are very close to the waste
disposal area. Therefore there are
prone to various diseases. In
order to maintain a healthy life,
proper hygiene and sanitation are
necessary. Consequently, it is
only possible with proper waste
management.
The Meaning of Waste Management
Waste management is the
managing of waste by disposal
and recycling of it. Moreover,
waste management needs proper
techniques keeping in mind the
environmental situations. For
instance, there are various
methods and techniques by
which the waste is disposed of.
Some of them are Landfills,
Composting, etc. Furthermore,
these methods are much useful
in disposing of the waste
without causing any harm to the
environment.
 Methods for Waste Management
• Recycling: Above all the most important method is the recycling of
waste. This method does not need any resources. Therefore this is
much useful in the management of waste. Recycling is the reusing of
things that are scrapped of. Moreover, recycling is further converting
waste into useful resources.
• Landfills: Landfills is the most common method for waste
management. The garbage gets buried in large pits in the ground and
then covered by the layer of mud. As a result, the garbage gets
decomposed inside the pits over the years. In conclusion, in this
method elimination of the odour and area taken by the waste takes
place.
• Composting: Composting is the natural process of recycling organic
matter, such as leaves and food scraps, into a valuable fertilizer that
can enrich soil and plants. This method increases the fertility of the
soil. As a result, it is helpful in more growth in plants. it the useful
conversion of waste management that is benefiting the environment.
 Advantages of Waste Management
• There are various advantages of waste management. Some of them are
below:
• Reduces pollution: Waste is the major cause of environmental
degradation. For instance, the waste from industries and households
pollute our rivers. Therefore waste management is essential. So that the
environment may not get polluted. Furthermore, it increases the hygiene
of the city so that people may get a better environment to live in.
• Reduces the production of waste: Recycling of the products helps in
reduction of waste. It generates new products which are again useful.
Moreover, recycling reduces the use of new products. So the companies
will decrease their production rate.
• Produces Energy: Many waste products can be further used to produce
energy. For instance, some products can generate heat by burning.
Furthermore, some organic products are useful in fertilizers. Therefore it
can increase the fertility of the soil.
 3 R’s of Environment – Reduce, Reuse
and Recycle
• 3 R’s of environment i.e., Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle, are essential parts
of Waste Hierarchy. 3 R’s works together to reduce the waste generated and
for the improvement of the waste management process
• The first R in the waste hierarchy is “Reduce.” The crucial thing in the
waste management procedure is to maintain a perfect balance in
consumption and recycle & reuse. If the consumption is less, the rate of
recycling or reuse will also be less.
• If you have a bag full of old things that are not in use, then you can find
out a way to reuse these thrown away things. The reuse of old stuff can
reduce waste and does not affect the waste hierarchy. If you do not have
any use of any of these thrown away items, then you can also donate it to
someone who needs it.
• Recycling is the third stage of the waste management process. Recycling is
a process in which the dumping items are transformed into a new item. You
can also send your unused items to recycling centres’. It is vital that you
are well aware of the things that can be recycled.
 What is Ozone Layer?
Ozone layer is a region with higher concentration of O 3
molecules. This layer was discovered in 1913 by French
physicists Charles Fabry and Henri Buisson. The ozone
shield is found in the Earth’s stratosphere. It is in the lower
parts of the stratosphere. Ozone is only a trace gas in the
atmosphere but does a very important job. Like a sponge,
the ozone layer absorbs bits of ultraviolet radiation hitting
Earth from the sun. Even though we need some of the
sun's radiation to live, too much of it can damage living
things. The ozone layer acts as a shield for life on Earth.
 Ozone Depletion
• Ozone layer is getting thinner due to the emission of harmful
chemical called chlorofluorocarbon (CFC). This contains three
elements- chlorine, fluorine and carbon. CFCs are found almost
everywhere, mostly in refrigerants and plastic products. They
don't usually poison living things. But the CFCs start eating
away at the ozone layer once they get blown into the
stratosphere.
• “Ozone holes” are popular names for areas of damage to the
ozone layer. Ozone layer damage is more like a really thin patch
than a hole. The ozone layer is thinnest near the poles. One
example of ozone depletion is the annual ozone "hole" over
Antarctica that has occurred during the Antarctic spring since the
early 1980s. This is not really a hole through the ozone layer, but
rather a large area of the stratosphere with extremely low
amounts of ozone.
 Ozone Depletion
In the 1970s, people all over the
world started realizing that ozone
was getting depleted and it was a
harmful thing. Hence, chemicals like
CFCs and aerosol cans were banned.
Without the ozone layer, too much
harmful UVB radiation would have
reached the Earth’s surface. This
would have been bad news.
Increased exposure to ultraviolet
radiation can cause skin cancer and
eye cataracts, and damage crops,
plants and micro-organisms,
affecting ecosystems and food
chains.
 How is the ozone layer getting depleted?
CFCs are quite indestructible and can sustain harsh conditions.
CFCs generally don’t react but only react with sunlight when it
breaks down to release chlorine.
CF2Cl2 + UV light →CF2Cl + Cl
This chlorine reacts with the Ozone layer and forms oxygen and
chlorine monoxide. The ozone depletion reactions are:
Cl + O3 → ClO + O2
When chlorine monoxide reacts with another molecule of oxygen, it
breaks up again and releases chlorine which can again react with
ozone and cause further depletion.
ClO + O → Cl + O2
Prevention of ozone depletion
The agreement to accelerate the phase out of
toxic chemicals happened under the 20 year-
old UN Montreal Protocol, a treaty to protect
the Earth’s ozone layer. Developed countries
agreed to reduce production and consumption
by 2010 by 75 per cent and by 90 per cent by
2015 with final phase out in 2020. Developing
countries have agreed to cut production and
consumption by 10 per cent in 2015; by 35
per cent by 2020 and by 67.5 per cent by 2025
with a final phase-out in 2030. Governments
also agreed an initial 2009 quota for critical
use exemptions of the banned ozone-depleting
pesticide methyl bromide. The ozone layer
has slowly recovered as people, businesses,
and governments work to control such
pollution. The ozone layer is expected to
return to normal levels by about 2050.
Thank you!