Module: 1

Changing perceptions of man’s relationship with nature in various phases of

history:

Relationship with Nature:

 Our relationship with nature has historically been one of imbalance and
overuse.
 Nearly every step in human history has unfortunately been accompanied with
a leap in environmental degradation.

History:

 At first, humans were incredibly in-tune with their surroundings. Nomadic

hunter-gatherer tribes used to roam the lands, following the ebb and flow of
the seasons. These tribes had a measurable impact on the environment, but
their influence was relatively manageable due to their population size.
 With advancements in technology and agriculture though, humans began to
find more efficient ways of sustaining themselves. These advancements
allowed for more permanent settlements, which led to rapid population growth
and a distancing from nature.
 As society evolved, populations grew, and more and more resources were
required to fuel the expansion. With breakthroughs in agriculture, settlements
became more permanent and cities began to take shape.
 This shift to city life inadvertently led to a distancing from nature. While many
people were still in-tune with nature on a subsistent level, the need for more
and more resources began to change our regard for nature.

Economy:

 The size of our population and its incessant desire to expand has an obvious
impact on the environment.
 Capitalism is an especially destructive force in our regard for nature as it
encourages a monetary-driven social hierarchy based on the encroaching
exploitation of our world’s resources. Our relationship with nature has now
become purely economic.

Time for change:

 Humans play a vital role in nature just like everything else. What separates
us from nature though, is the ability to understand our place within it.
 This cognitive capacity of ours has historically been the cause of a perceived
division between man and nature.
 However, to achieve a sustainable future in which humans assume a more
natural role and have less of an impact it is imperative that we reconsider our
role and relationship with nature.
Responses and attitudes to nature and landscape resources as a function of
this perception:

Everything in nature is connected

 People in traditional societies typically emphasize the fact that everything in

nature is connected.
 They believe that many events are, directly or indirectly, a consequence of
human actions, beyond human understanding.
 It is part of their culture to treat nature with careful respect to avoid adverse
consequences.
 This perception of nature is like the concept in human ecology that human
actions generate chains of effects that reverberate through ecosystems and
social systems.

Nature is benign and perverse

 Benign means ‘kind’ or ‘promotes well-being’. Perverse is the opposite.

 This perception of nature states that nature is benign if people do not radically
change ecosystems from their natural condition.
 In other words, the ecosystem is okay. However, nature can be perverse if
people change ecosystems to such an extent that they are unable to function
properly.
 The ecosystem changes to a form that does not provide the services as well
as before. In other words, the ecosystem is not okay.

Nature is fragile

 This view believes that nature has a delicate balance that will fall apart if
people change ecosystems from their natural condition.
 It emphasizes the ‘not okay’ element of the ‘okay/not okay’ response of
ecosystems to human actions.
 This perspective holds that small departures from natural conditions can lead
to disastrous and irreversible consequences for ecosystems.
 Changing the ecosystem state even a little can move the ecosystem to
another stability domain.
 Of course, ‘fragile’ does not mean that the ecosystem disappears. Every place
always has an ecosystem, and it always will. Fragile means it is easy to
change from one type of biological community to another.

Nature is durable

 This perception of nature is the opposite of the ‘fragile’ point of view.

 It has been a common part of Western society’s worldview since the Industrial
Revolution.
 It focuses on the ‘okay’ element of the ‘okay/not okay’ response of
ecosystems to human actions.
 This view holds that people can use and shape nature any way they want.
  Nature can meet any demands that people make on it, as long as people use
the proper science and technology to extract the benefits that nature has to
offer.

Nature is capricious

 Capricious means ‘unpredictable’.

 This perspective emphasizes the random element in ecosystems.
 Many people, such as farmers and fishermen, who depend directly upon
nature for their living, experience nature as highly variable and unpredictable.

Environmental and Behavioural Theories:

Entropy:

 The Second Law of Thermodynamics states that the state of entropy of the
entire universe, as an isolated system, will always increase over time.
 Entropy treats of the distribution of energy.
 Understanding pattern-process relationships across scales in space and time.

Prospect and Refuse:

 Prospect-refuge theory was developed by Jay Appleton, an English

geographer and academic in 1975.
 He proposes that humans seek out to satisfy an innate desire when reviewing
a space — to have opportunity [prospect] whilst being safe [refuge].
 This stems from evolutionary survival, where the predator must be able to see
their prey without being seen.
 Prospect-refuge theory suggests that spaces we find most acceptable to be in
present us with great opportunity, yet we must be in a place of safety at the time.

Prospect examples

• a distant vista
• an elevated view
• large natural wonders — mountains, oceans, lakes, sky expanse

Refuge examples

• an interior space
• a bench seat with a wall behind
• a cave or grotto

Defensible Space Theory:

 The defensible space theory of architect and city planner Oscar

Newman encompasses ideas about crime prevention and neighbourhood
safety.
  As defined by Newman “a residential environment whose physical
characteristics—building layout and site plan—function to allow inhabitants
themselves to become key agents in ensuring their security.”
 “Defensible space therefore is a sociophysical phenomenon.”
 Quality of social security through design.

 Territoriality – Visual cues and boundaries between public and private

space enhance perception of ownership
 Natural surveillance – Easily seen movements project sense of safety,
reduce fear
 Image – The ‘message’ the building transmits about itself; should blend in
with community
 Milieu – Placement of high-density housing in relation to other land use is
important

Social and cultural dimensions of landscape:

 Circulation
 Open spaces
 Vegetation
 Visual transparency

Circulation system:
 Clarity of movement
The structure of the complex is clear but, one can’t visualize the whole building
completely. The linkage to house is from internal streets and walkways.
 Vehicular circulation
The road network is peripheral and internal thus to maintain the traffic free area
within the complex, the vehicular parking is on the periphery; presently the
pedestrian walk way is also used as the vehicular access.
 Pedestrian circulation
The pedestrian streets are the main circulation spines which collect pedestrian and
terminate them at the nodal points. I.e. Parking and residential private courts.
Segregation of vehicular and pedestrian circulation is seen through peripheral
circulation with parking along the edges.

Open spaces System:

 Internal open spaces

Open space works on the hierarchy as one entre the central spine and enhances he
elements of surprise for the visitor.
  Private open spaces
Balconies of each units looking at the central court, terraces provide outdoor space
for sleeping in summers and serves for drying clothes and places to bask in winters.
 Semi-private open spaces
Entry at the staircase at the internal court provides opportunities for social
interaction.
Activity Pattern:
 The central green space is used for various activities mostly during the
festivals.
 The internal courts are used for small gatherings.
 The staircase is used by ladies during the afternoon time.
Module: 2
Soil Genesis:
Pedogenesis is also termed soil development, soil evolution, soil formation, and soil
genesis. It is the process of soil formation as regulated by the effects of place,
environment, and history.
Weathering of Rocks:
 Soils may be formed in place from rock or formed in weathered rock and
minerals that have been transported from where the original rock occurred.
Physical disintegration:
 Physical disintegration causes decrease in size without appreciably altering
composition.
 Differential stresses due to heating and cooling or expansion of ice break the
rock.
 Abrasion due to water containing sediment or wind carrying debris is another
type of physical weathering.
Chemical decomposition:
 Chemical decomposition and synthesis alter chemical composition.
 Four types of chemical weathering reactions are: hydrolysis, hydration, acid
dissolution and redox.
Biological decomposition
 Biological weathering is the weakening and subsequent disintegration of rock
by plants, animals and microbes.
 Growing plant roots can exert stress or pressure on rock.
 Although the process is physical, the pressure is exerted by a biological
process.
Soil Morphology:
  Soil morphology is the field observable attributes of the soil within the
various soil horizons and the description of the kind and arrangement of
the horizons.

Classification of Soil:
On basis of Size:
 Sand (and coarser) particles are visible to the naked eye.

 Silt particles become dusty when dry and are easily brushed off hands
and boots.

 Clay particles are greasy and sticky when wet and hard when dry and
must be scraped or washed off hands and boots.
On basis of Range of Grains:

Very coarse BOULDERS > 200 mm

soils COBBLES 60 - 200 mm
coarse 20 - 60 mm
G
medium 6 - 20 mm
GRAVEL
Coarse fine 2 - 6 mm
soils coarse 0.6 - 2.0 mm
S
medium 0.2 - 0.6 mm
SAND
fine 0.06 - 0.2 mm
coarse 0.02 - 0.06 mm
Fine M
medium 0.006 - 0.02 mm
soils SILT
fine 0.002 - 0.006 mm
 C CLAY < 0.002 mm

On basis of Construction Material:

 Built on: foundations to buildings, bridges.

 Built in: tunnels, culverts, basements.

 Built with: roads, runways, embankments, dams.

 Supported: retaining walls, quays.

Classification in India:

Soil Properties: -
Physical Property:
Soil texture
  Soil texture, which is a description of the size distribution of the mineral soil
particles composing the solid fraction of the soil is perhaps the most
important, since it determines many other physical properties (and some
chemical properties.
Soil structure
 Soil structure describes the arrangement of mineral particles and organic
matter in the soil, and particularly the arrangement of pores among these
particles, and the stability of this arrangement under external forces such as
traffic or rainfall drops.
Bulk density
 Bulk density, the ratio between soil dry mass and volume, is a very important
soil property influencing soil water retention, aeration, trafficability, and
infiltration rate, and is extremely sensible to soil management.
Average soil porosity
 Average soil porosity is a useful parameter.
 Soil mechanical resistance reflects the resistance encountered in the soil to
penetration and is directly related to soil compaction.
Chemical Property:
Soil pH
 Soil pH is that of the soil solution that is in equilibrium with protons (H+ )
retained by soil colloids (clays, organic matter, oxides). The degree of acidity
or alkalinity of a soil is a very relevant property affecting many other
physicochemical and biological properties.
Redox Status
 The redox status of a soil is determined by the availability of electrons which
can participate in redox reactions and it is controlled by physical conditions
and biological activity.
 It affects the solubility and speciation of elements with different redox states,
such as N, S, Fe, Mn, some toxic trace elements and even C.
Ion Retention
 Ions can be retained in soils by precipitation and adsorption processes.
 Adsorption is the accumulation of chemical species on the surfaces of an
existing solid in the soil.
Exchange Capacity
 Exchangeable ions are those weakly adsorbed by soil particles that can be
displaced from sorption sites by other ions in the solution.
 Exchangeable ions are essential for maintaining plant nutrient reserves in the
soil.
Salinity and Sodicity
  Salinity is defined as a high concentration of soluble salts in soils. A saline soil
has a soluble salt concentration high enough to negatively affect the growth
and development of most cultivated plants.
 Sodicity is referred to a high exchangeable Na concentration in soils. Since
Na salts are common in saline soils, both problems are usually related.
Biological Property:
Living Organisms
 Many living organisms are found in healthy soil, from large creatures, such as
earthworms, to the smallest bacteria. Soil organisms help to decompose
organic matter.
 The burrowing habit of the larger organisms incorporates the organic matter
into the soil and creates large pore spaces that aerate the soil and allow faster
water infiltration.
 The smaller organisms, such as bacteria, actinomycetes, fungi, yeasts, algae
and protozoa, further decompose the organic matter, which releases nutrients
in a form that plants can use.
Organic matter
 Organic matter is anything that is living or the remains of a living thing.
 However, in the context of soil composition, organic matter is a build-up in the
soil of decayed plant and animal residues.
 The benefits of organic matter in the soil include improving soil structure and
increasing the nutrient and water holding capacity of the soil.
 Organic matter also provides a food supply for soil biology.
 Soils with low organic matter can have ‘poor’ structure, hold little water, and
erode or leach nutrients easily.
Soil use and Management:
Soil management is an integral part of land management and may focus on
differences in soil types and soil characteristics to define specific interventions that
are aimed to enhance the soil quality for the land use selected.
Soil management practices that affect soil quality include:
 Controlling traffic on the soil surface helps to reduce soil compaction, which
can reduce aeration and water infiltration.
 Cover crops keep the soil anchored and covered in off-seasons so that the
soil is not eroded by wind and rain.
 Crop rotations for row crops alternate high-residue crops with lower-residue
crops to increase the amount of plant material left on the surface of the soil
during the year to protect the soil from erosion.
 Nutrient management can help to improve the fertility of the soil and the
amount of organic matter content, which improves soil structure and function.
 Tillage is the breaking of soil, such as with a plough or harrow, to control
weeds. Reduced-tillage or no-till operations limit the amount of soil
disturbance while cultivating a new crop and help to maintain plant residues
on the surface of the soil for erosion protection and water retention.
Land reclamation:
 Land reclamation, the process of improving lands to make them suitable for a
more intensive use.
 Reclamation efforts may be concerned with the improvement of rainfall-
deficient areas by irrigation, the removal of detrimental constituents from salty
or alkali lands, the diking and draining of tidal marshes, the smoothing and
revegetation of strip-mine spoil areas, and similar activities.
Reclamation of Swampy Lands
 Where excess water accumulates in and on the soil, the land is rendered unfit
for production of many crops.
 The reclamation of such wet areas is centred on means of removing the water
from these areas more rapidly than it is removed in their natural condition.
 This process is termed drainage.
Reclamation of Salt-Affected Soils
 Installing drainage systems to wash salts down the soil profile (this method is
expensive and complicated).
 Leaching out saline soils by applying water to contaminated soils to wash
salts beyond the root zone.
Reclamation of Arid Land
 Irrigation
Reclamation of Mine Spoils
 Where mineral deposits are near the surface of the earth, frequently they are
exposed for mining by excavating the entire overburden with power shovels.
 reclamation of spoil banks is generally confined to reforestation, to
development of grazing land, or to reclaiming for recreational areas.
Soil remediation:
 Soil remediation involves the removal of harmful contaminants such as,
heavy metals, sewage sludge, coal tar, carcinogenic hydrocarbons, liquors
and petroleum from soils.
 Soil remediation can be achieved using biological techniques.
 This method is called bioremediation.
Some examples of bioremediation techniques include:
• Phytoremediation: The use of plants to remove contaminants from soils or to
degrade contaminants to a lesser toxic form. Some plants can extract contaminants
from soils. This process is called phytoextraction.
• Bioaugmentation: This is the introduction of genetically modified micro-organisms
into contaminated soils with the aim of degrading contaminants.
• Land-based treatments: This includes techniques like land farming and
composting.
Soil Degradation:
Soil degradation is the decline in soil condition caused by its improper use or poor
management, usually for agricultural, industrial or urban purposes. It is a serious
environmental problem. Soils are a fundamental natural resource and are the basis
for all terrestrial life.
Causes of soil degradation:
 Excessive Population Pressure on Land
 Deforestation
 Erosion
 Over-Irrigation
 Floods and Droughts
Remedies of Land Degradation:
 Wastelands should be afforested
 The demand for timber should be drastically reduced
 Catchment areas or water-sheds must be thickly vegetated
 Tanks should be desilted
 Shifting agriculture
 Fertilisers and micronutrients
 Soil fertility should be restored by using cultural practices
 Mulching
 Green manuring
 Introduction of leguminous crops
 More use of organic manure.
Module: 3
Earthwork Grading:
Earthwork Grading in civil engineering and landscape architectural construction is
the work of ensuring a level base, or one with a specified slope, for a construction
work such as a foundation, the base course for a road or a railway, or landscape and
garden improvements, or surface drainage.
Contour grading: Description of Contour Lines Contour lines are a method for
depicting three dimensions on two-dimensional media, while maintaining a uniform
scale in all directions.
A contour line is an imaginary line connecting points of equal elevations and is
formed by the intersection of a horizontal plane with the ground surface. The spacing
and shape of contour lines indicate the shape and the inter-relationships of these
land forms. A natural example of a contour line is the shoreline of a still body of
water.
Applications of Earthwork: Typically, earthwork is done in the following projects:

 Road works
 Railways
 Irrigation project such as canals and dams
  Other common earthwork applications are land grading to reconfigure the
topography of a site, or to stabilize slopes

Cutting: Cutting is the process of excavating earth material from a work location or
borrow pits to achieve the desired topography.

Filling: The filling is the process of moving the excavated material or additional earth
material to a work location to achieve the desired topography.
Swale:
A swale is a low tract of land, especially one that is moist or marshy. The term can
refer to a natural landscape feature or a human-created one. Artificial swales are
often infiltration basins designed to manage water runoff, filter pollutants, and
increase rainwater infiltration.
The swale concept has also been popularized as a rainwater harvesting and soil
conservation strategy by Bill Mollison, Geoff Lawton and other advocates
of permaculture. In this context it usually refers to a water-harvesting ditch on
contour. Another term used is contour bund.
Cross Section Method:
 Sections are drawn at equal intervals through the project.
 For each section line the cut area and the fill area is determined.
 The volume between two sections is determined as the average area of the two
sections multiplied by the distance between them.
 By adding together, the volumes between all the sections the total cut and fill
volumes are obtained.
 This calculation is repeated for all the sections, and the values are added
together to get the total cut and fill volumes.
Grid Method:
 The average cut or fill depths are determined for each cell in the grid.
 From these depths the volumes of each grid cell can be calculated, and by
adding the cell volumes together the total cut and fill volumes are obtained