Our Environment

 Everything that surrounds us is environment. It includes both living (biotic) and non-living (abiotic) components.
The term Ecosystem was coined by Tansley.
 Ecology is the study of organisms, the environment and how they interact with each other and their
environment.

Ecosystem
Interaction between these biotic and abiotic components
form an ecosystem. All the interacting organisms in an area
together with the non-living constituents of the
environment forms an ecosystem. E.g., forest, pond etc.
Types of ecosystem : It is of two types :
(a) Natural ecosystem : The ecosystem which exist in
nature on its own.
E.g., forest, lake, ocean.
(b) Artifical ecosystem : Man-made ecosystems are called
artificial ecosystem.
E.g., crop field, aquarium, garden.
(a) Abiotic Components : All the non-living components
such as air, water, land, light, temperature etc. form the
abiotic components.
(b) Biotic Components : All the living components such as
plants, animals, bacteria, fungi etc. form the biotic
components.
On the basis of nutrition biotic components are further divided into:
Producers: All green plants and blue-green algae can produce their own food using abiotic components
(photosynthesis), hence called producers.
Consumers: Include all animals which depend on producers directly or indirectly for their food.
Consumers are further divided into :
(i) Herbivores : Plant eaters e.g., goat, deer.
(i) Carnivores : Flash eaters e.g., tiger, crocodile.
(iii) Omnivores : Eats both plants and animals e.g., human.
(iv) Parasites : Live on the body of host and take food fromatg., lice, cascuta.
Decomposers : Include organisms which decompose the dead plants and animals e.g., bacteria, fungi. These help in the
replenishment of natural resources. Decomposers play a vital role in getting rid of waste and the
remains of plants and animals. As a result, they keep the surroundings clean and make room for new
generations of living things. Decomposers help in mineral cycle replenishment.
FOOD CHAIN
Food chain is a series of organisms in which one organism eats another organism as food. For e.g.,
Grass — Deer — Lion
Plants → Worm→ Bird → Cat
Plants→ Grasshopper→ Frog→ Snake→ Hawk
Algae→ → Small fish → Big fish —> Carnivorous Bird
In a food chain various steps where transfer of energy takes place is called a trophic level.
Food web : In nature large numbers of food chains are interconnected forming a food web.
Trophic level :
The flow of food or energy in an ecosystem is called food chain. Different levels of food chain are termed as
Trophic levels.
• Usually, there are four trophic levels present in the ecosystem because level of energy decreases during the
flow of energy from one trophic level to the another trophic level.
(i) First trophic level [T1]: Producers
(ii) Second trophic level [T2]: Primary consumers
(iii) Third trophic level [T3]: Secondary consumers
(iv) Fourth trophic level [T4]: Top consumer
ECOLOGICAL PYRAMIDS
An ecological pyramid is a graphical representation of an ecological parameter like number of individuals or amount of
biomass or amount of energy present in various trophic levels of a food chain with producers forming the base and top
carnivores from the tip. Ecological pyramids could be upright or inverted.
Pyramid of Number: n this type of pyramid the number of individual organisms in various trophic levels is shown. These
pyramids may be upright or inverted. n a tree ecosystem the pyramid of number is inverted. Pyramid of number shows
biotic potential of an ecosystem.
Pyramid of Biomass: The biomass of each trophic level is shown by this pyramid. Mostly these pyramids are
also upright (erect). e.g. Tree ecosystem.
• Pyramid of biomass in aquatic ecosystem is inverted, because in this producers are phytoplankton and their
biomass is lesser than other trophic levels.
Pyramid of Energy:It always remains erect, because flow of energy is not cyclic. i.e. during the flow of energy
at each trophic level goes on decreasing.
Flow of energy between trophic levels
Flow of energy in a food chain is unidirectional.
Green plants capture 1% of sunlight and convert it into food energy.
10 percent law : Only 10% of energy is transferred to the next trophic level. The remaining 90% energy is used in life
processes (digestion, growth, reproduction etc.) by present trophic level.Due to this gradual decrease in energy, food
chains contain 3-4 trophic levels.

Ozone Layer Depletion

Ozone is a modied oxygen gas. Three oxygen atoms together constitute one molecule of ozone. The
chemical formula is O3. A dense ozone layer exists in the stratosphere zone, about 25 to 30 km. above the Earth surface.
Ozone protects the earth from harmful ultraviolet rays from reaching in the atmosphere, which may cause skin cancer.
Ozone at the higher levels of the atmosphere, the stratosphere, is a product of UV radiation acting on oxygen
(O2) molecule. The higher energy UV radiations split apart some molecular oxygen (O2) into free oxygen (O) atoms.
These atoms then combine with the molecular oxygen to form ozone as shown
O2---------------------------->O + O
(Presence of UV)
O + O2-------------------------> O3
(Ozone)
Chloro Fluoro Carbon (CFC), which is used in aerosol cans and fridges, ACs, is responsible for damaging
the ozone layer. CFC remains in the atmosphere and reacts with the ultraviolet rays from sunlight, breaks itself and
releases the chlorine. e free chlorine then acts as a catalyst and breaks the ozone molecule to oxygen molecule and one
oxygen atom. is process goes for years after years. Above Antarctica, ozone layer thinning was observed in 1985.
Environmental problems : Changes in the environment affect us and our activities change the environment around us.
Human activities leads to pollution, deforestation etc.
Garbage disposal
Improvements in lifestyle have resulted in accumulation of large amounts of waste materials.
Garbage contains following type of materials :
(a) Biodegradable : Substances which can be decomposed by the action of micro-organisms are called biodegradable
wastes. E.g., fruit and vegetable peels, cotton, jute, dung, paper, etc.
(b) Non-biodegradable wastes : Substances which cannot be decomposed by the action of micro-organisms are called
non-biodegradable wastes. E.g., plastic, polythenes, metals, synthetic fibres, radioactive wastes, pesticides etc.

Micro-organisms release enzymes which decompose the materials but these enzymes are specific in their action that’s
why enzymes cannot decompose all the materials.
Biological magnification : The concentration of harmful chemicals increases with every next trophic level in a food
chain. This is called biological magnification. Maximum concentration of such chemicals get accumulated in human
bodies as human occupy the top level in any food chain.
Some methods of waste disposal
Biogas plant : Biodegradable waste can be used in biogas plant to produce biogas and manure.
Sewage treatment plant : The drain water can be cleaned in sewage treatment plant before adding it to rivers.
Land fillings : The wastes are buried in low lying areas and are compacted by rolling with bulldozers.
Composting : Organic wastes are filled in a compost pit and covered with a layer of soil, after about three months
garbage changes to manure.
Reuse and recycling technique: e separating out of materials such as rubber, glass, paper and scrap metal from wastes
and reprocessing them for reuse is named as reclamation of waste or recycling.
Incineration: The burning of materials is called incineration. Hazardous bio-medical wastes are
usually disposed-of by means of incineration.

SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS (2 Marks)

Q1. Define trophic level.
Q2. What is the full form of CFC and UNEP ?
Q3. Name the radiations that are absorbed by the ozone layer.
Q4. Which will get more energy secondary consumers or tertiary consumers ?
Q5. What is the functional unit of environment ?
Q6. Which of the following are not biodegradable :
Wool, glass, silver foil, leather.
SHORT ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS (3 Marks)
1. Why are green plants called producers ?
2. Name two materials which can be recycled.
3. What will happen if we kill all the organisms of a trophic level ?
4. Why only 10% energy is transferred to the next trophic level ?
5. Which bag will you prefer for shopping and why ?
(a) Jute bag (b) Polythene bag
6. Why is ozone layer important for the existence of life on earth ?
7. Differentiate between biodegradable waste and non-biodegradable waste
8. Draw an energy pyramid showing different trophic level.
9. What is the role of decomposers in ecosystem ?
10. How ozone molecule is formed in the atmosphere ?
11. Define consumers. What are its further divisions ?
12. Why natural ecosystem is more stable than artificial ecosystem ?
13. Why some materials are not decomposed by the action of micro-organisms?
14. What is a food web ? Explain with example.
15.Give any two ways in which non-biodegradable wastes would affect the environment.
16. How the components of an ecosystem are dependent on each other ?
17. Mention some sources of CFC’s.
18. Distinguish between a food chain and a food web.
19. What would happen if there are no decomposers on earth?
20. What is a food chain? Write a ve step food chain found in grass land with a frog as one of the
members. What will happen to organisms at di-erent trophic levels if all the frogs are removed?
21. The number of malaria patients increased tremendously when a large number of frogs were exported from the
village. What could be the cause for it? Explain with the help of a food chain
LONG ANSWER TYPE QUESTIONS (5 Marks)
1. ‘What are different methods for disposal of garbage ? (CBSE-2018, 2019)
2. What is food chain ? Give its characteristics. Explain how energy flows through different trophic levels in a food chain.
3. Indicate the ow of energy in an ecosystem. Why is it unidirectional? Justify.
4. What are decomposers? What will be the consequence of their absence in an ecosystem?
4. Explain some harmful e-ects of agricultural practices on the environment.
5. Suggest suitable mechanism (s) for waste management in fertilizer industries.
6. Dene trophic level. How many trophic levels are there in an ecosystem?

Q. 1. Assertion: A network of food chain existing together in an ecosystem is known as a food web.
Reason: An animal like kite cannot be a part of the food web.
Q. 2. Assertion: Fossil fuels are non-renewable sources of energy.
Reason: Excessive use of fossil fuels causes pollutions and leads to global warming.
Q. 3. Assertion: Pollutant is a substance that is naturally or artificially released and causes adverse effect on the
environment.
Reason: Sulphur dioxide is a pollutant.
Q. 4. Assertion: ozone is a poisonous gas.
Reason: Depletion of the ozone layer causes skin cancer.
Q. 5. Assertion: consumers prey on producers
Reason: That is why 2nd consumers are carnivores.