Republic of the Philippines

UNIVERSITY OF EASTERN PHILIPPINES

University Town, Northern Samar, Philippines
Website: uep.edu.ph; Email: ueppres06@gmail.com

Module 3.1-3.2 – Environmental Science

Learning Activities:

1. Compare and Contrast the terms Environment and Ecosystem.

The environment is everything that surrounds us, it is the area we live in, in a
given point of time. It enables us to live on earth by sustaining life. It comprises all the
physical, chemical, and natural forces that exist on our planet. The environment is
derived from the word ‘environ’ which means surrounding in French. The biotic
components of the environment are all organisms like birds, animals, human beings,
reptiles, including the microorganisms like bacteria, algae, viruses, and so on. The abiotic
components of the environment are soil, land, mountain, river, cloud, air, including
physical components like temperature, humidity, and so on. The environment is very
crucial for good health and sustenance of life on Earth. However, over the past few years’
human activities, modernization, and industrialization have deteriorated the
environmental conditions. Deforestation, air pollution, acid rain, soil erosion are the
consequences of environmental imbalance that also affect the life of living organisms. It
is very important to look after the environment and take measures to save it and keep it
healthy.
The ecosystem is considered as the structural and functional unit of ecology. It is
a community where the living and nonliving components of the environment are in
continuous interaction. It can be termed as the chain of interactions taking place between
living organisms and the environment. It can be small or huge. I can be an oasis in the
desert or an ocean that covers thousands of miles. It is responsible for maintaining
stability within the environment. An ecosystem is either aquatic, that which exists in the
water or terrestrial, which means the land-based ecosystems. Different land-based
ecosystems are forest, grassland, tundra, and desert. An aquatic ecosystem is either
freshwater or marine. All biotic and abiotic components are interrelated in an ecosystem.
It is always in the state of continuous evolution.

Ma. Miguela Tan

BSIT-2D
Environmental Science
 2. Discuss the interdependence of the living and nonliving components of an ecosystem.

The interdependence of the living things is that they grow, change, produce waste,
reproduce, and die. Some examples of living things are organisms such as plants,
animals, fungi, and bacteria. While in Non-living things they’re not grow, need
food, or reproduce. Some examples of important nonliving things in an ecosystem
are sunlight, temperature, water, air, wind, rocks, and soil.

Nonliving components are important parts of any ecosystem. Sunlight is

one of the most important nonliving components. Light from the Sun helps plants
to produce food and oxygen. Sunlight also provides heat that makes life on Earth
possible. Without the Sun’s heat, Earth would be too cold for most living things to
survive. Take a deep breath. Every time you breathe, you take in air. Air is a
mixture of gases, including nitrogen, oxygen, and carbon dioxide. These gases are
nonliving components needed by almost all organisms on Earth. Water is another
important nonliving component. Think about how thirsty you get after you
exercise. Your body is telling you that it needs water—you cannot live without it.
In fact, about 60% of your body is water! Temperature is a nonliving component
that affects living things in an ecosystem. Think about what happens when the
temperature drops in the winter. Animals move to warmer areas or hibernate, trees
lose their leaves and stop growing, and people begin to wear warmer clothing.
Soil is another kind of nonliving component. In a desert, the soil is very sandy and
has little moisture. It can support only certain plants that have adaptations to live
with very little rainfall. In a rain forest, the soil can be poor in nutrients but high
in moisture. It supports large trees, long vines, and many other kinds of plants that
take up nutrients in the soil right away and often grow quickly. Animals compete
with each other for nonliving components such as water. But, animals aren’t the
only organisms that compete for the resources around them! Plants also compete
with each other for nonliving parts of an ecosystem. Suppose a fire destroys a
forest. A short while later, new trees start to grow. At first, many young plants
may grow in the forest. But, some plants such as trees are able to absorb more
water and nutrients and they begin to grow taller. As they grow, they block the
sunlight to smaller plants growing below. The smaller plants cannot produce
enough food to sustain themselves and die off. Forest ecosystems change because
conditions in the forest are constantly changing.

While Living Things components also important parts of the ecosystem. A

forest has plants such as grasses, bushes, and trees. The grasses and bushes
provide food to animals like deer and mice. Trees provide shade from the sunlight
and shelter to other organisms. Birds help spread the seeds of a plant to new areas
of the forest. Earthworms mix and move the soil, which helps circulate nutrients
back to the ecosystem. When organisms die, their bodies become part of the soil
Ma. Miguela Tan
BSIT-2D
Environmental Science
 and provide nutrients to plants and other organisms. The living components of the
forest depend on each other for survival. Animals that eat only plants are called
herbivores. Animals that eat only other animals are called carnivores. Predators
are atype of carnivore that catch and eat other animals. The animals they catch
and eat are called prey. Animals that eat both plants and animals are omnivores.

Ma. Miguela Tan

BSIT-2D
Environmental Science