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What is Environment?
– Environment is the surroundings or conditions in which a person, animal, or plant lives or operates.
– Environment is the circumstances, objects, or conditions by which one is surrounded.
– Environment is the conditions that you live or work in and the way that they influence how you feel or how effectively you can work.
– Environment is the sum total of all surroundings of a living organism, including natural forces and other living things, which provide conditions for development and growth as well as of danger and damage.
– Environment is all the circumstances, people, things, and events around them that influence their life.
– Environment is the total of all surroundings of man, including nonliving things, natural forces and other living things.
– Environment is all of the natural materials and living things, including sunlight. If those things are natural, it is a natural environment.
– Environment is the natural world of land, sea, air, plants, and animals.
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| Lake Thun in Switzerland Good environment supports human beings, animals and plants |
So you can see that environment is everything that is around us. It can be living or non-living things. It includes physical, chemical and other natural forces. Living things live in their environment.
They constantly interact with the environment and change in response to conditions in their environment. There are interactions between animals (including humans), plants, soil, water, and other living and non-living things.
Since everything is part of the environment of something else, the word ‘environment’ is used to talk about many things. People in different fields of knowledge (like history, geography or biology) use the word environment differently.
Environmental issues
Environmental issues are the Problems harmful effects of any human activity that have developed as a result of human interference on the environment. This includes both the biological and physical aspects of the environment. Air pollution, water pollution, natural environment pollution, garbage pollution, etc.
Environmental management
Environmental management is a systematic approach to finding practical ways for saving environment (forest, land, water, energy, and other materials) and reducing negative environmental impacts.
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| Environmental Management |
THE IMPORTANCE OF ENVIRONMENT
Environment is the key for existence of life on the Earth. All living organisms on Earth depend on the environment for survival. We should always strive to manage and conserve our environment. It matters because Earth is the only home that humans have, and it provides air, food, and other needs. The environment is important for the following reasons:
1. General life support
The environment contains all the resources which sustain life. These resources include soil, air, and water. The soil contains water and mineral nutrients which support plants on which humans and other animals feed.
Without soil there would be no food. Even the animals that are eaten by man such birds, cattle, etc. feed on plants that grown on the soil. The increasing human population need food to survive. It is therefore important to ensure the soil is productive enough to produce enough food to feed the ever-increasing human population.
Air, as a part of the environment is needed by all organisms on Earth, including those that we cannot see with our naked eyes (microorganisms). Air is essential for life and no organism can survive without it.
A constant supply of fresh air is very important though in recent years, air pollution has been a big problem, especially in heavily industrialized countries. Air pollution denies us clean air and also makes the Earth excessively hot, a condition known as global warming.
2. Natural beauty
Another reason the environment is so important is because it is a source of natural beauty. People enjoy nature for recreation, tourism, and sports such as skiing in snow or rafting. The physical landscape, drainage features, plants and animals are beautiful to look at in their natural settings. Nature is considered necessary for proper physical and mental health too.
Unfortunately the planet is in danger. Many species of animals and plants are nearing extinction, and more and more beautiful, open spaces are disappearing as new buildings and factories are built.
3. Natural resources
The environment contains diverse natural resources. The most important natural resources and products derived from the environment include the following:
a) Water – Water is an important resource needed for survival of all living organisms.
b) Medicines – Many plants have been used as medicines for hundreds of years, and are even now exploited by modern pharmaceuticals.
c) Clothing – Clothes are produced from plants like wood pulp, cotton, hemp, jute or animal products like silk, wool, and leather. In addition, synthetic clothes are produced from petroleum products.
d) Wood – Wood from forests or plantations is used as fuel, in construction and for making furniture.
e) Biofuels – Biofuels, like bioethanol, are extracted from wheat, corn or biomass crops like jatropha.
f) Fossil fuels – Fossil fuels, such as coal, gas and crude oil used in transportation, energy generation and production of plastics and chemicals, depend on dead plant and animal biomass produced by previous ecosystems that are stored and accumulated over millions of years on Earth.
4. Quality of air
Trees produce oxygen during photosynthesis. In addition, during this process trees also use carbon dioxide in the air and reduce its concentration in the atmosphere. This process regulates and maintains the carbon cycle. Trees can also remove pollutants from the air.
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| Good environment supports human beings, animals and plants |
ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS
Environmental problems refer to known processes (such as resource consumption) that have negative effects on the sustainability of the environmental quality necessary for the well being of the organisms living in it. Some scholars define environmental problems as problems caused by environmental changes due to human activities that greatly endanger the well-being of humans and the balance of our ecosystem.
The main environmental problems facing the Earth include the following:
1. Pollution
2. Overpopulation
3. Global warming
4. Waste disposal
5. Climate change
6. Loss of biodiversity
7. Desertification
8. Ocean acidification
9. Ozone layer depletion
10. Acid rain
11. Natural disasters
12. Overgrazing
The Causes, Extent and Effects of Pollution and Waste Mismanagement
Pollution is the introduction of contaminants into the natural environment that causes adverse change. Pollution can take the form of chemical substances or energy, such as noise, heat or light. Pollutants, the components of pollution, can be either foreign substances/energies or naturally occurring contaminants.
