Unit Ii

Unit
2 Natural Resources
Life on this planet earth depends upon a large number of things and
services provided by the nature, which are known as Natural resources.
Thus water, air, soil, minerals, coal, forests, crops and wild life are all
examples of natural resources.
The natural resources are of two kinds:
l Renewable resources which are inexhaustive and can be
regenerated within a given span of time e.g. forests, wildlife,

wind energy, biomass energy, tidal energy, hydro power etc.
Solar energy is also a renewable form of energy as it is an
inexhaustible source of energy.
l Non-renewable resources which cannot be regenerated e.g.
Fossil fuels like coal, petroleum, minerals etc. Once we exhaust

these reserves, the same cannot be replenished.
Even our renewable resources can become non-renewable if we
exploit them to such extent that their rate of consumption exceeds their
rate of regeneration. For example, if a species is exploited so much that
its population size declines below the threshold level then it is not able
to sustain itself and gradually the species becomes endangered or extinct.
It is very important to protect and conserve our natural resources
and use them in a judicious manner so that we dont exhaust them. It
does not mean that we should stop using most of the natural resources.
Rather, we should use the resources in such a way that we always save
enough of them for our future generations. In this unit we shall discuss
the major natural resources:
(i) Forest resources
(ii) Water resources
(iii) Mineral resources
(iv) Food resources
(v) Energy resources
(vi) Land resources.
5
6 Environmental Science and Engineering
2.1 FOREST RESOURCES

Forests are one of the most important natural resources on this earth.
Covering the earth like a green blanket these forests not only produce
innumerable material goods, but also provide several environmental
services which are essential for life.
About 1/3rd of the worlds land area is forested which includes
closed as well as open forests. Former USSR accounts for about a 5th
of the worlds forests, Brazil for about a 7th and Canada and USA each
for 6-7%. But it is a matter of concern that almost everywhere the cover
of the natural forests has declined over the years. The greatest loss
occurred in tropical Asia where one third of the forest resources have
been destroyed.
n USES OF FORESTS
Commercial uses: Forests provide us a large number of commercial
goods which include timber, firewood, pulpwood, food items, gum,
resins, non-edible oils, rubber, fibers, lac, bamboo canes, fodder,
medicine, drugs and many more items, the total worth of which is
estimated to be more than $ 300 billion per year.
Half of the timber cut each year is used as fuel for heating and
cooking. One third of the wood harvest is used for building materials
as lumber, plywood and hardwood, particle board and chipboard. One
sixth of the wood harvest is converted into pulp and used for paper
industry. Many forest lands are used for mining, agriculture, grazing,
and recreation and for development of dams.
Ecological uses: While a typical tree produces commercial goods
worth about $ 590 it provides environmental services worth nearly
$ 196, 250.
The ecological services provided by our forests may be summed
up as follows:
l Production of oxygen: The trees produce oxygen by photo-
synthesis which is so vital for life on this earth. They are rightly
called as earths lungs.
l Reducing global warming: The main greenhouse gas car-
bon dioxide (CO2) is absorbed by the forests as a raw material

for photosynthesis. Thus forest canopy acts as a sink for CO2
thereby reducing the problem of global warming caused by
greenhouse gas CO2.
Natural Resources 7
l Wild life habitat: Forests are the homes of millions of wild

animals and plants. About 7 million species are found in the
tropical forests alone.
l Regulation of hydrological cycle: Forested watersheds act
like giant sponges, absorbing the rainfall, slowing down the
runoff and slowly releasing the water for recharge of springs.
About 50-80 %of the moisture in the air above tropical forests
comes from their transpiration which helps in bringing rains.
l Soil Conservation: Forests bind the soil particles tightly in
their roots and prevent soil erosion. They also act as wind-
breaks.
l Pollution moderators: Forests can absorb many toxic gases
and can help in keeping the air pure. They have also been
reported to absorb noise and thus help in preventing air and
noise pollution.
n OVER EXPLOITATION OF FORESTS

Since time immemorial, humans have depended heavily on forests for
food, medicine, shelter, wood and fuel. With growing civilization the
demands for raw material like timber, pulp, minerals, fuel wood etc.
shooted up resulting in large scale logging, mining, road-building and
clearing of forests. Our forests contribute substantially to the national
economy. The international timber trade alone is worth over US $ 40
billion per year. Excessive use of fuel wood and charcoal, expansion of
urban, agricultural and industrial areas and overgrazing have together
led to over-exploitation of our forests leading to their rapid degrada-
tion.
n DEFORESTATION
The total forest area of the world in 1900 was estimated to be 7,000
million hectares which was reduced to 2890 million ha in 1975 and fell
down to just 2,300 million ha by 2000. Deforestation rate is relatively
less in temperate countries, but it is very alarming in tropical countries
where it is as high as 40-50 percent and at the present rate it is esti-
mated that in the next 60 years we would lose more than 90 percent of
our tropical forests.
The forested area in India seems to have stabilized since 1982
with about 0.04% decline annually between 1982-90. FAO (1983)
estimated that about 1.44 m ha of land was brought under afforestation
during this period leading to stabilization. As per FAO estimates, the
deforestation rate per unit population in India is the lowest amongst

the major tropical countries, despite the fact that we have a huge
population size and very low per capita forest area (0.075 ha per capita).
However, we are still far behind the target of achieving 33% forest area,
as per our National Forest Policy, as we are still having only 19.27 % of
our land area (63.38m ha) covered by forests based on satellite data
(MoEF, 1998)
Major Causes of Deforestation
(i) Shifting cultivation: There are an estimated 300 million
people living as shifting cultivators who practice slash and burn
agriculture and are supposed to clear more than 5 lakh ha of forests for
shifting cultivation annually. In India, we have this practice in North-
East and to some extent in Andhra Pradesh, Bihar and M.P which
contribute to nearly half of the forest clearing annually.
(ii) Fuel requirements: Increasing demands for fuel wood by the
growing population in India alone has shooted up to 300-500 million
tons in 2001 as compared to just 65 million tons during independence,
thereby increasing the pressure on forests.
(iii) Raw materials for industrial use: Wood for making boxes,
furniture, railway-sleepers, plywood, match-boxes, pulp for paper in-
dustry etc. have exerted tremendous pressure on forests. Plywood is in
great demand for packing tea for Tea industry of Assam while fir tree
wood is exploited greatly for packing apples in J&K.
(iv) Development projects: Massive destruction of forests occur
for various development projects like hydroelectric projects, big dams,
road construction, mining etc.
(v) Growing food needs: In developing countries this is the main
reason for deforestation. To meet the demands of rapidly growing
population, agricultural lands and settlements are created permanently
by clearing forests.
(vi) Overgrazing: The poor in the tropics mainly rely on wood as
a source of fuel leading to loss of tree cover and the cleared lands are
turned into the grazing lands. Overgrazing by the cattle leads to fur-
ther degradation of these lands.
Major Consequences of Deforestation
Deforestation has far reaching consequences, which may be outlined
as follows:
(i) It threatens the existence of many wild life species due to
destruction of their natural habitat.
Natural Resources 9
(ii) Biodiversity is lost and along with that genetic diversity is

eroded.
(iii) Hydrological cycle gets affected, thereby influencing rainfall.
(iv) Problems of soil erosion and loss of soil fertility increase.
(v) In hilly areas it often leads to landslides.
CASE STUDIES
l Desertification in hilly regions of the Himalayas

Deforestation in Himalayas, involving clearance of natural for-
ests and plantation of monocultures like Pinus roxburghi, Euca-
lyptus camadulensis etc. have upset the ecosystem by changing
various soil (edaphic) and biological properties. Nutrient cy-
cling has become poor, original rich germplasm is lost and the
area is invaded by exotic weeds. These areas are not able to
recover and are losing their fertility. The entire west Khasi hill
district of Meghalaya in North-east Himalayas, Ladakh and
parts of Kumaon and Garhwal are now facing the serious prob-
lem of desertification.
l Disappearing Tea gardens in Chhota Nagpur
This hilly region used to be a good forested area towards the

turn of the century and used to receive fairly frequent after-
noon showers favouring tea plantations. Following the destruc-
tion of forests, rainfall declined in Chhota Nagpur to such an
extent that tea -gardens also disappeared from the region.
l Waning Rainfall in Udhagamandalam (Ooty)

The sub normal rainfall during 1965-84 at Ooty in Nilgiri moun-
tains has been found to be closely associated with declining
forest cover in this region in the past 20 years. The rainfall pat-
tern was found to fluctuate with wooded land area in the hills.
When the Nilgiri mountains had luxuriant forest cover annual
rainfall used to be much higher.
Major Activities in Forests

Timber Extraction: Logging for valuable timber, such as teak and
Mahogany not only involves a few large trees per hectare but about a
dozen more trees since they are strongly interlocked with each other
by vines etc. Also road construction for making approach to the trees
causes further damage to the forests.
Mining: Mining operations for extracting minerals and fossil fuels
like coal often involves vast forest areas. Mining from shallow deposits
is done by surface mining while that from deep deposits is done by
sub-surface mining. More than 80,000 ha of land of the country is
presently under the stress of mining activities. Mining and its associated
activities require removal of vegetation along with underlying soil
mantle and overlying rock masses. This results in defacing the
topography and destruction of the landscape in the area.
Large scale deforestation has been reported in Mussorie and
Dehradun valley due to indiscriminate mining of various minerals over
a length of about 40 Km. The forested area has declined at an average
rate of 33% and the increase in non-forest area due to mining activities
has resulted in relatively unstable zones leading to landslides.
Indiscriminate mining in forests of Goa since 1961 has destroyed
more than 50,000 ha of forest land. Coal mining in Jharia, Raniganj
and Singrauli areas have caused extensive deforestation in Jharkhand.
Mining of magnesite and soap- stones have destroyed 14 ha of forest in
the hill slopes at Khirakot, Kosi valley, Almora. Mining of radioactive
minerals in Kerala, Tamilnadu and Karnataka are posing similar threats
of deforestation. The rich forests of Western Ghats are also facing the
same threat due to mining projects for excavation of copper, chromite,
bauxite and magnetite.
n DAMS AND THEIR EFFECTS ON FORESTS AND PEOPLE

Big dams and river valley projects have multi-purpose uses and have
been referred to as Temples of modern India. However, these dams are
also responsible for the destruction of vast areas of forests. India has
more than 1550 large dams, the maximum being in the state of
Maharashtra (more then 600), followed by Gujarat (more then 250)
and Madhya Pradesh (130). The highest one is Tehri dam, on river
Bhagirathi in Uttaranchal and the largest in terms of capacity is Bhakra
dam on river Satluj in H.P. Big dams have been in sharp focus of various
environmental groups all over the world which is mainly because of
several ecological problems including deforestation and socio-economic
problems related to tribal or native people associated with them. The
Natural Resources 11
Silent Valley hydroelectric project was one of the first such projects
situated in the tropical rain forest area of Western Ghats which attracted
much concern of the people. The crusade against the ecological damage
and deforestation caused due to Tehri dam was led by Sh. Sunder lal Bahuguna,
the leader of Chipko movement. The cause of Sardar Sarovar Dam related
issues has been taken up by the environmental activists Medha Patekar, joined
by Arundhati Ray and Baba Amte.
For building big dams, large scale devastation of forests takes place
which breaks the natural ecological balance of the region. Floods,
droughts and landslides become more prevalent in such areas. Forests
are the repositories of invaluable gifts of nature in the form of
biodiversity and by destroying them ( particularly, the tropical rain for-
ests) we are going to lose these species even before knowing them. These
species could be having marvelous economic or medicinal value and
deforestation results in loss of this storehouse of species which have
evolved over millions of years in a single stroke.
Sardar Sarovar Dam (Uprooted Forests And Tribals):

A case study
The dam is situated on river Narmada and is spread over three
states of Gujarat, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. Although
the project is aimed at providing irrigation water, drinking water
and electricity to the three states, the environmental impacts of
the project have raised challenging questions.
A total of 1,44,731 ha of land will be submerged by the dam, out
of which 56,547 ha is forest land. A total of 573 villages are to be
submerged by the Narmada Dam.
Submergence of about 40,000 ha of forest under Narmada Sagar,
13,800 ha under Sardar Sarovar and 2,500 ha under Omkareshwar
would further create pressure on remaining forest areas in
adjoining areas. Submergence area is very rich in wildlife e.g. tigers,
panthers, bears, wolves, pangolins, hyenas, jackals, flying squirrels,
antelopes, black bucks, chinkara, marsh crocodiles, turtles etc.
Many of these species are listed in schedule I & II of Wildlife
Protection Act, 1972. Thus massive loss of these wildlife species
is apprehended due to the devastation of the forest under the
project.
As per the estimates of the Institute of Urban Affairs, New Delhi,
the Narmada valley project will lead to eventual displacement of
more than one million people, which is probably the largest
(Contd.)
rehabilitation issue ever encountered as per the World Bank.

Uprooting of the tribals and their forced shifting in far-flung areas
may not be easily adjusted to. Besides serious economic
deprivation, the displacement will affect the tribal peoples culture,
their beliefs, myths and rituals, festivals, songs and dances, all
closely associated with the hills, forest and streams. Most of these
tribals belong to poor, unprivileged schedule castes and tribes who
are being uprooted from a place where they have lived for
generations. The displaced persons have to undergo hardship and
distress for the sake of development and prosperity of a larger
section of the society. It is therefore the duty of the project
proponents and government to pay maximum attention for proper
rehabilitation of the displaced tribals.
2.2 WATER RESOURCES

Water is an indispensable natural resource on this earth on which all
life depends. About 97% of the earths surface is covered by water and
most of the animals and plants have 60-65% water in their body.
Water is characterized by certain unique features which make it a
marvellous resource:
(i) It exists as a liquid over a wide range of temperature i.e. from
0° to100°C.
(ii) It has the highest specific heat, due to which it warms up and
cools down very slowly without causing shocks of tempera-
ture jerks to the aquatic life.
(iii) It has a high latent heat of vaporization Hence, it takes a huge
amount of energy for getting vaporized. Thats why it produces
a cooling effect as it evaporates.
(iv) It is an excellent solvent for several nutrients. Thus, it can serve
as a very good carrier of nutrients, including oxygen, which
are essential for life. But, it can also easily dissolve various
pollutants and become a carrier of pathogenic microorganisms.
(v) Due to high surface tension and cohesion it can easily rise
through great heights through the trunk even in the tallest of
the trees like Sequoia.
(vi) It has an anamolous expansion behaviour i.e. as it freezes, it
expands instead of contracting and thus becomes lighter. It is
because of this property that even in extreme cold, the lakes
freeze only on the surface. Being lighter the ice keeps floating,
whereas the bottom waters remain at a higher temperature
and therefore, can sustain aquatic organisms even in extreme
cold.
The water we use keeps on cycling endlessly through the
environment, which we call as Hydrological Cycle. We have enormous
resources of water on the earth amounting to about 1404 million Km3.
The water from various moist surfaces evaporates and falls again on
the earth in the form of rain or snow and passes through living organisms
and ultimately returns to the oceans. Every year about 1.4 inch thick
layer of water evaporates from the oceans, more than 90% of which
returns to the oceans through the hydrological cycle. Solar energy drives
the water cycle by evaporating it from various water bodies, which
subsequently return through rainfall or snow. Plants too play a very

important role by absorbing the groundwater from the soil and releasing
it into the atmosphere by the process of transpiration.
Global distribution of water resources is quite uneven depending
upon several geographic factors. Tropical rain forest areas receive
maximum rainfall while the major world deserts occur in zones of dry,
descending air (20-40° N and S) and receive very little rainfall.
n WATER USE AND OVER-EXPLOITATION

Due to its unique properties water is of multiple uses for all living
organisms. Water is absolutely essential for life. Most of the life processes
take place in water contained in the body. Uptake of nutrients, their
distribution in the body, regulation of temperature, and removal of
wastes are all mediated through water.
Human beings depend on water for almost every developmental
activity. Water is used for drinking, irrigation, transportation, washing
and waste disposal for industries and used as a coolant for thermal
power plants. Water shapes the earths surface and regulates our climate.
Water use by humans is of two types: water withdrawal: taking
water from groundwater or surface water resource and water
consumption: the water which is taken up but not returned for reuse.
Globally, only about 60 percent of the water withdrawn is consumed
due to loss through evaporation.
With increasing human population and rapid development, the
world water withdrawal demands have increased many folds and a large
proportion of the water withdrawn is polluted due to anthropogenic
activities. On a global average 70 percent of the water withdrawn is
used for agriculture. In India, we use 93% of water in agricultural sector
while in a country like Kuwait, which is water-poor, only 4% is used
for watering the crops. About 25% of water on global average is used in
industry, which again varies from a high of 70% in European countries
to as low as 5% in less developed countries. Per capita use of water
shows wide variations. In USA, an average family of 4 consumes more
than 1000 M3 of water per year, which is many times more than that in
most developing countries.
Water: A Precious Natural Resource

Although water is very abundant on this earth, yet it is very precious.
Out of the total water reserves of the world, about 97% is salty water
(marine) and only 3% is fresh water. Even this small fraction of fresh
water is not available to us as most of it is locked up in polar ice caps
and just 0.003% is readily available to us in the form of groundwater
and surface water.
Overuse of groundwater for drinking, irrigation and domestic pur-
poses has resulted in rapid depletion of groundwater in various regions
leading to lowering of water table and drying of wells. Pollution of
many of the groundwater aquifers has made many of these wells unfit
for consumption.
Rivers and streams have long been used for discharging the
wastes. Most of the civilizations have grown and flourished on the banks
of rivers, but unfortunately, growth in turn, has been responsible for
pollution of the rivers.
As per the United Nations estimates (2002), at least 101 billion
people do not even have access to safe drinking water and 2.4 billion
do not have adequate sanitation facilities. Increasing population and
expanding development would further increase the demands for wastes.
It is estimated that by 2024, two-thirds of the world population would
be suffering from acute water shortage.
Groundwater
About 9.86% of the total fresh water resources is in the form of
groundwater and it is about 35-50 times that of surface water supplies.
Till some time back groundwater was considered to be very pure.
However, of late, even groundwater aquifers have been found to be
contaminated by leachates from sanitary landfills etc.
A layer of sediment or rock that is highly permeable and contains
water is called an aquifer. Layers of sand and gravel are good aquifers
while clay and crystalline rocks (like granite) are not since they have
low permeability. Aquifers may be of two types:
Unconfined aquifers which are overlaid by permeable earth
materials and they are recharged by water seeping down from above in
the form of rainfall and snow melt.
Confined aquifers which are sandwitched between two
impermeable layers of rock or sediments and are recharged only in
those areas where the aquifer intersects the land surface. Sometimes
the recharged area is hundreds of kilometers away from the location of
the well. Fig 2.2.1 shows the groundwater system. Groundwater is not
static, it moves, though at a very slow rate of about a meter or so in a
year.
Unconfined aquifer recharge area

Evapo-transpiration
Precipitation from croplands Evaporation
Evaporation from stream
from lake
Confined
aquifer
recharge
area Infiltration
Permeable
rock
Infiltration Unconfined
aquifer
(Water table)
Confined
Less permeable Impermeable aquifer
material rock layer
Fig. 2.2.1. The groundwater system. An unconfined aquifer

(water table) is formed when water collects over a rock or
compact clay. A confined aquifer is formed sandwitched
between two layers having very low permeability.
Effects of Groundwater Usage

(i) Subsidence: When groundwater withdrawal is more than its
recharge rate, the sediments in the aquifer get compacted, a
phenomenon known as ground subsidence. Huge economic
losses may occur due to this phenomenon because it results in
the sinking of overlying land surface. The common problems
associated with it include structural damage in buildings,
fracture in pipes, reversing the flow of sewers and canals and
tidal flooding.
(ii) Lowering of water table: Mining of groundwater is done
extensively in arid and semi-arid regions for irrigating crop
fields. However, it is not advisable to do excessive mining as it
would cause a sharp decline in future agricultural production,
due to lowering of water table.
(iii) Water logging: When excessive irrigation is done with
brackish water it raises the water table gradually leading to
water-logging and salinity problems.
Surface Water
The water coming through precipitation (rainfall, snow) when does
not percolate down into the ground or does not return to the atmos-
phere as evaporation or transpiration loss, assumes the form of streams,
lakes, ponds, wetlands or artificial reservoirs known as surface water.
The surface water is largely used for irrigation, industrial use, public
water supply, navigation etc. A countrys economy is largely depend-
ent upon its rivers.
Water rich vs. Water poor countries

The top ten water rich countries are Iceland, Surinam, Guyana,
Papua New Guinea, Gabon, Solomon Islands, Canada, Norway,
Panama, and Brazil lying in the far north and have low evaporation
losses.
The water poor countries include Kuwait, Egypt, United Arab
Emirates, Malta, Jordon, Saudi Arabia, Singapore, Maldovia,
Israel and Oman, lying in the desert belt at about 15° to 25°
Latitude and some of them like Malta and Singapore are densely
populated areas resulting in low per capita water.
n FLOODS
In some countries like India and Bangladesh rainfall does not occur
throughout the year, rather, 90% of it is concentrated into a few months
(June-September). Heavy rainfall often causes floods in the low-lying
coastal areas. Prolonged downpour can also cause the over-flowing of
lakes and rivers resulting into floods.
Deforestation, overgrazing, mining, rapid industrialization, global
warming etc. have also contributed largely to a sharp rise in the incidence
of floods, which otherwise is a natural disaster.
Floods have been regular features of some parts of India and
Bangladesh causing huge economic loss as well as loss of life. People
of Bangladesh are accustomed to moderate flooding during monsoon
and they utilize the flood water for raising paddy. But, severe floods
like that in 1970, 1988 and 1991 resulting from excessive Himalayan
runoff and storms, had very disastrous consequences causing massive
deaths and damages. In 1970, about one million people were drowned
while 1,40,000 people died in 1991. Networking of rivers is being
proposed at national level to deal with the problems of floods.
n DROUGHTS
There are about 80 countries in the world, lying in the arid and semi-
arid regions that experience frequent spells of droughts, very often
extending up to year long duration. When annual rainfall is below
normal and less than evaporation, drought conditions are created.
Ironically, these drought- hit areas are often having a high population
growth which leads to poor land use and makes the situation worse.
Anthropogenic causes: Drought is a meteorological
phenomenon, but due to several anthropogenic causes like over grazing,
deforestation, mining etc. there is spreading of the deserts tending to
convert more areas to drought affected areas. In the last twenty years,
India has experienced more and more desertification, thereby increasing
the vulnerability of larger parts of the country to droughts.
Erroneous and intensive cropping patter n and increased
exploitation of scarce water resources through well or canal irrigation
to get high productivity has converted drought - prone areas into
desertified ones. In Maharashtra there has been no recovery from
drought for the last 30 years due to over-exploitation of water by
sugarcane crop which has high water demands.
Remedial measures: Indigenous knowledge in control of drought
and desertification can be very useful for dealing with the problem.
Carefully selected mixed cropping help optimize production and
minimize the risks of crop failures. Social Forestry and Wasteland
development can prove quite effective to fight the problem, but it should
be based on proper understanding of ecological requirements and
natural process, otherwise it may even boomrang. The Kolar district of
Karnataka is one of the leaders in Social Forestry with World Bank
Aid, but all its 11 talukas suffer from drought. It is because the tree
used for plantation here was Eucalyptus which is now known to lower
the water table because of its very high transpiration rate.
n CONFLICTS OVER WATER

Indispensability of water and its unequal distribution has often led to
inter-state or international disputes. Issues related to sharing of river
water have been largely affecting our farmers and also shaking our
governments. Some major water conflicts are discussed here.
l Water conflict in the Middle East: Three river basins, namely
the Jordan, the Tigris-Euphrates and the Nile are the shared
water resources for Middle East countries. Ethiopia controls
the head waters of 80% of Niles flow and plans to increase it.
Sudan too is trying to divert more water. This would badly

affect Egypt, which is a desert, except for a thin strip of
irrigated cropland along the river Nile and its delta.
The population of Egypt is likely to double in the next 20
years, thereby increasing its water crisis. Likewise there is a
fierce battle for water among Jordan, Syria and Israel for the
Jordan River water share.
Turkey has abundant water and plans to build 22 dams on
Tigris-Euphrates for Hydroelectric power generation. But, it
would drastically reduce the flow of water to Syria and Iraq,
lying downstream. Turkey dreams to become the regions
water Super power. It plans to transport and sell water to
starved Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, Syria, Israel and Jordan.
Probably, the next war in the Middle East would be fought
over water and not oil.
l The Indus Water Treaty: The Indus, one of the mightiest
rivers is dying a slow death due to dams and barrages that
have been built higher up on the river. The Sukkur barrage
(1932), Ghulam Mohamad Barrage at Kotri (1958) and
Tarbela and Chasma Dams on Jhelum, a tributary of Indus
have resulted in severe shrinking of the Indus delta. In 1960,
the Indus water treaty was established vide which Indus, the
Jhelum and the Chenab were allocated to Pakistan and the
Satluj, the Ravi and the Beas were allocated to India. Being
the riparian state, India has pre-emptive right to construct
barrages across all these rivers in Indian territory. However,
the treaty requires that the three rivers allocated to Pakistan
may be used for non-consumptive purposes by India i.e. without
changing its flow and quality. With improving political
relations between the two countries it is desirable to work out
techno-economic details and go for an integrated development
of the river basin in a sustainable manner.
l The Cauvery water dispute: Out of Indias 18 major rivers,
17 are shared between different states. In all these cases, there
are intense conflicts over these resources which hardly seem
to resolve. The Cauvery river water is a bone of contention
between Tamilnadu and Karnataka and the fighting is almost
hundred years old. Tamilnadu, occupying the downstream
region of the river wants water-use regulated in the upstream.
Whereas, the upstream state Karnataka refuses to do so and
claims its primacy over the river as upstream user. The river
water is almost fully utilized and both the states have increasing
demands for agriculture and industry. The consumption is
more in Tamilnadu than Karnataka where the catchment area
is more rocky. On June 2,1990, the Cauvery Water Dispute
Tribunal was set up which through an interim award directed
Karnataka to ensure that 205 TMCF of water was made
available in Tamil Nadus Mettur dam every year, till a
settlement was reached. In 1991-92 due to good monsoon,
there was no dispute due to good stock of water in Mettur,
but in 1995, the situation turned into a crisis due to delayed
rains and an expert Committee was set up to look into the
matter which found that there was a complex cropping pattern
in Cauvery basin. Sambra paddy in winter, Kurvai paddy in
summer and some cash crops demanded intensive water, thus
aggravating the water crisis. Proper selection of crop varieties,
optimum use of water, better rationing, rational sharing
patterns, and pricing of water are suggested as some measures
to solve the problem.
l The Satluj-Yamuna link (SYL) canal dispute: The issue of
sharing the Ravi-Beas waters and SYL issue between Punjab
and Haryana is being discussed time and again and the case is
in the Supreme Court. The Eradi Tribunal (1985) based the
allocation of water on the basis of the time-inflow data of 20
years (1960-80), according to which 17.17 MAF (million acre
feet) water was available. However, now it is argued by Punjab
that in the last 17 years there has been consistent decline
reducing the quantity to 14.34 MAF. The Supreme Court on
January 15, 2002 directed Punjab to complete and commission
the SYL within a year, failing which the Center was told to
complete it. However, two years have passed, but neither the
SYL has been completed nor the conflict over sharing of Ravi-
Beas water is resolved.
The conflict is that Punjab being the riparian state for Beas,
Ravi and Satluj stakes its claim, Haryana has faced acute
shortage of water after it became a state in 1966 and has been
trying to help it out by signing an MOU (Memorandum of
understanding) with UP, Rajasthan and Delhi for allocation
of Yamuna waters. The Yamuna basin covers the state of
Haryana while the Indus basin covers Punjab.
The conflict revolving around sharing of river water needs to
be tackled with greater understanding and objectivity.
Traditional Water Management System

In India, even today, there are several villages where water management
is done not by the Irrigation Department, but by local managers. In
south India, a neerkatti manages the traditional tanks very efficiently
based on his/her knowledge of the terrain, drainage and irrigation
needs. They usually give preference to the tail end fields and decide per
capita allocation of water based on the stock of available water in the
tank and crop needs. In Maharashtra, the water mangers are called
havaldars or jaghyas who manage and resolve conflicts by overseeing
the water channels from main canal to the distributory canals. In
Ladakh, the water manager is known as churpun who has got complete
charge with full powers over allocation of available water. The major
source of water is melt water from glaciers and snow supplementary
by water from springs and marshes. The water is distributed to different
fields through an intricate network of earthen channels.
In traditional water management, innovative arrangements ensure
equitable distribution of water, which are democratically implemented.
The gram-sabhas approve these plans publicly. While water disputes
between states and nations often assume battle like situations, our
traditional water managers in villages prove to be quite effective.
n BIG DAMS- BENEFITS AND PROBLEMS

Benefits
River valley projects with big dams have usually been considered to
play a key role in the development process due to their multiple uses.
India has the distinction of having the largest number of river-valley
projects. These dams are often regarded as a symbol of national
development. The tribals living in the area pin big hopes on these
projects as they aim at providing employment and raising the standard
and quality of life. The dams have tremendous potential for economic
upliftment and growth. They can help in checking floods and famines,
generate electricity and reduce water and power shortage, provide
irrigation water to lower areas, provide drinking water in remote areas
and promote navigation, fishery etc.
Environmental Problems
The environmental impacts of big-dams are also too many due to which
very often the big dams become a subject of controversy. The impacts
can be at the upstream as well as downstream levels.
(A) The upstream problems include the following:

(i) Displacement of tribal people
(ii) Loss of forests, flora and fauna
(iii) Changes in fisheries and the spawning grounds
(iv) Siltation and sedimentation of reservoirs
(v) Loss of non-forest land
(vi) Stagnation and waterlogging near reservoir
(vii) Breeding of vectors and spread of vector-borne diseases
(viii) Reservoir induced seismicity (RIS) causing earthquakes
(ix) Growth of aquatic weeds.
(x) Microclimatic changes.
(B) The downstream impacts include the following:
(i) Water logging and salinity due to over irrigation
(ii) Micro-climatic changes
(iii) Reduced water flow and silt deposition in river
(iv) Flash floods
(v) Salt water intrusion at river mouth
(vi) Loss of land fertility along the river since the sediments carry-
ing nutrients get deposited in the reservoir
(vii) Outbreak of vector-borne diseases like malaria
Thus, although dams are built to serve the society with multiple
uses, but it has several serious side-effects. That is why now there is a
shift towards construction of small dams or mini-hydel projects.
2.3 MINERAL RESOURCES

Minerals are naturally occurring, inorganic, crystalline solids having a
definite chemical composition and characteristic physical properties.
There are thousands of minerals occurring in different parts of the world.
However, most of the rocks, we see everyday are just composed of a
few common minerals like quartz, feldspar, biotite, dolomite, calcite,
laterite etc. These minerals, in turn, are composed of some elements
like silicon, oxygen, iron, magnesium, calcium, aluminium etc.
n USES AND EXPLOITATION

Minerals find use in a large number of ways in everyday use in domestic,
agricultural, industrial and commercial sectors and thus form a very
important part of any nations economy. The main uses of minerals are
as follows:
(i) Development of industrial plants and machinery.
(ii) Generation of energy e.g. coal, lignite, uranium.
(iii) Construction, housing, settlements.
(iv) Defence equipments-weapons, armaments.
(v) Transportation means.
(vi) Communication- telephone wires, cables, electronic devices.
(vii) Medicinal system- particularly in Ayurvedic System.
(viii) Formation of alloys for various purposes (e.g. phosphorite).
(ix) Agricultureas fertilizers, seed dressings and fungicides (e.g.
zineb containing zinc, Maneb-containing manganese etc.).
(x) Jewellerye.g. Gold, silver, platinum, diamond.
Based on their properties, minerals are basically of two types:
(i) Non metallic minerals e.g. graphite, diamond, quartz, feldspar.
(ii) Metallic minerals e.g. Bauxite, laterite, haematite etc.
Use of metals by human beings has been so extensive since the
very beginning of human civilization that two of the major epochs of
human history are named after them as Bronze Age and Iron Age. The
reserves of metals and the technical know-how to extract them have
been the key elements in determining the economy and political power
of nations. Out of the various metals, the one used in maximum quantity
is Iron and steel (740 million metric tons annually) followed by
manganese, copper, chromium, aluminium and Nickel.
Distribution and uses of some of the major metallic and non-

metallic minerals are given in Tables 2.3.1 and 2.3.2.
Table 2.3.1. Major reserves and important uses
of some of the major metals
Metal Major World Reserves Major Uses
Aluminium Australia, Guinea, Packaging food items, transpor-
Jamaica tation, utensils, electronics
Chromium CIS, South Africa For making high strength steel
alloys, In textile/tanning
industries
Copper U.S.A., Canada, CIS, Electric and electronic goods,
Chile, Zambia building, construction, vessels
Iron CIS, South America, Heavy machinery, steel produc-
Canada, U.S.A. tion transportation means
Lead North America, U.S.A., Leaded gasoline, Car batteries,
CIS paints, ammunition
Manganese South Africa, CIS, For making high strength, heat-
Brazil, Gabon resistant steel alloys
Platinum South Africa, CIS Use in automobiles, catalytic
group converters, electronics, medical
uses.
Gold South Africa, CIS, Ornaments, medical use, elec-
Canada tronic use, use in aerospace
Silver Canada, South Africa, Photography, electronics
Mexico jewellery
Nickel CIS, Canada, New Chemical industry, steel alloys
Caledonia
Table 2.3.2. Major uses of some non-metallic minerals

Non-metal Mineral Major Uses
Silicate minerals Sand and gravel for construction, bricks, paving etc.
Limestone Used for concrete, building stone, used in agriculture
for neutralizing acid soils, used in cement industry
Gypsum Used in plaster wall-board, in agriculture
Potash, phosphorite Used as fertilizers
Sulphur pyrites Used in medicine, car battery, industry.
It is evident from the Tables that the CIS countries (The Com-
monwealth of Independent States i.e. 12 repubics of former USSR),
the United States of America, Canada, South Africa and Australia are
having the major world reserves of most of the metallic minerals. Due
to huge mineral and energy resources, the USA became the richest and
the most powerful nation in the world in even less than 200 years. Ja-
pan too needs a mention here, as there are virtually no metal reserves,
coal, oil and timber resources in Japan and it is totally dependent on
other countries for its resources. But, it has developed energy efficient
technologies to upgrade these resources to high quality finished prod-
ucts to sustain its economy.
Minerals are sometimes classified as Critical and Strategic.
Critical minerals are essential for the economy of a nation e.g.
iron, aluminium, copper, gold etc.
Strategic minerals are those required for the defence of a country
e.g. Manganese, cobalt, platinum, chromium etc.
Some Major Minerals of India
(a) Energy generating minerals
Coal and lignite: West Bengal, Jharkhand, Orissa, M.P., A.P.
Uranium (Pitchblende or Uranite ore): Jharkhand, Andhra
Pradesh (Nellore, Nalgonda), Meghalaya, Rajasthan (Ajmer).
(b) Other commercially used minerals
Aluminium (Bauxite ore): Jharkhand, West Bengal,
Maharashtra, M.P., Tamilnadu.
Iron (haematite and magnetite ore): Jharkhand, Orissa, M.P.,
A.P., Tamilnadu, Karnataka, Maharashtra and Goa.
Copper (Copper Pyrites): Rajasthan (Khetri), Bihar, Jharkhand,
Karnataka, M.P., West Bengal, Andhra Pradesh and
Uttaranchal.
n ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF MINERAL EXTRACTION

AND USE
The issue related to the limits of the mineral resources in our earths
crust or in the ocean is not so significant. More important environ-
mental concern arises from the impacts of extraction and processing of
these minerals during mining, smelting etc.
Indian Scenario: India is the producer of 84 minerals the annual
value of which is about Rs. 50,000 crore. At least six major mines need
a mention here which are known for causing severe problems:
(i) Jaduguda Uranium Mine, Jharkhandexposing local people

to radioactive hazards.
(ii) Jharia coal mines, Jharkhandunderground fire leading to
land subsidence and forced displacement of people.
(iii) Sukinda chromite mines, Orissaseeping of hexavalent
chromium into river posing serious health hazard, Cr6+ being
highly toxic and carcinogenic.
(iv) Kudremukh iron ore mine, Karnatakacausing river
pollution and threat to biodiversity.
(v) East coast Bauxite mine, OrissaLand encroachment and
issue of rehabilitation unsettled.
(vi) North-Eastern Coal Fields, AssamVery high sulphur
contamination of groundwater.
Impacts of mining: Mining is done to extract minerals (or fossil
fuels) from deep deposits in soil by using sub-surface mining or from
shallow deposits by surface mining. The former method is more
destructive, dangerous and expensive including risks of occupational
hazards and accidents.
Surface mining can make use of any of the following three types:
(a) Open-pit mining in which machines dig holes and remove the
ores (e.g. copper, iron, gravel, limestone, sandstone, marble,
granite).
(b) Dredging in which chained buckets and draglines are used
which scrap up the minerals from under-water mineral
deposits.
(c) Strip mining in which the ore is stripped off by using bulldozers,
power shovels and stripping wheels (e.g. phosphate rocks).
The environmental damage caused by mining activities are as
follows:
(i) Devegetation and defacing of landscape: The topsoil as well
as the vegetation are removed from the mining area to get
access to the deposit. While large scale deforestation or
devegetation leads to several ecological losses as already
discussed in the previous section, the landscape also gets badly
affected. The huge quantities of debris and tailings alongwith
big scars and disruptions spoil the aesthetic value of the region
and make it prone to soil erosion.
(ii) Subsidence of land: This is mainly associated with
underground mining. Subsidence of mining areas often results
in tilting of buildings, cracks in houses, buckling of roads,
bending of rail tracks and leaking of gas from cracked pipe-

lines leading to serious disasters.
(iii) Groundwater contamination: Mining disturbs the natural
hydrological processes and also pollutes the groundwater.
Sulphur, usually present as an impurity in many ores is known
to get converted into sulphuric acid through microbial action,
thereby making the water acidic. Some heavy metals also get
leached into the groundwater and contaminate it posing health
hazards.
(iv) Surface water pollution: The acid mine drainage often con-
taminates the nearby streams and lakes. The acidic water is
detrimental to many forms of aquatic life. Sometimes radio-
active substances like uranium also contaminate the water
bodies through mine wastes and kill aquatic animals. Heavy
metal pollution of water bodies near the mining areas is a
common feature creating health hazards.
(v) Air pollution: In order to separate and purify the metal from
other impurities in the ore, smelting is done which emits
enormous quantities of air pollutants damaging the vegetation
nearby and has serious environmental health impacts. The
suspended particulate matter (SPM), SOx, soot, arsenic
particles, cadmium, lead etc. shoot up in the atmosphere near
the smelters and the public suffers from several health
problems.
(vi) Occupational Health Hazards: Most of the miners suffer from
various respiratory and skin diseases due to constant exposure
to the suspended particulate matter and toxic substances.
Miners working in different types of mines suffer from
asbestosis, silicosis, black lung disease etc.
Remedial measures: Safety of mine workers is usually not a
priority subject of industry. Statistical data show that, on an average,
there are 30 non-fatal but disabling accidents per ton of mineral
produced and one death per 2.5 tons of mineral produced.
In order to minimize the adverse impacts of mining it is desirable
to adopt eco-friendly mining technology. The low-grade ores can be
better utilized by using microbial-leaching technique. The bacterium
Thiobacillus ferroxidans has been successfully and economically used for
extracting gold embedded in iron sulphide ore. The ores are inoculated
with the desired strains of bacteria, which remove the impurities (like
sulphur) and leave the pure mineral. This biological method is helpful
from economic as well as environmental point of view.
Restoration of mined areas by re-vegetating them with appropri-

ate plant species, stabilization of the mined lands, gradual restoration
of flora, prevention of toxic drainage discharge and conforming to the
standards of air emissions are essential for minimizing environmental
impacts of mining.
CASE STUDIES
l Mining and quarrying in Udaipur

About 200 open cast mining and quarrying centers in Udaipur,
about half of which are illegal are involved in stone mining
including soapstone, building stone, rock phosphate and dolomite.
The mines spread over 15,000 hectares in Udaipur have caused
many adverse impacts on environment. About 150 tonnes of
explosives are used per month in blasting. The overburden,
washoff, discharge of mine water etc. pollute the water. The Maton
mines have badly polluted the Ahar river. The hills around the
mines are devoid of any vegetation except a few scattered patches
and the hills are suffering from acute soil erosion. The waste water
flows towards a big tank of Bag Dara. Due to scarcity of water
people are compelled to use this effluent for irrigation purpose.
The blasting activity has adversely affected the fauna and the
animals like tiger, lion, deer and even hare, fox, wild cats and
birds have disappeared from the mining area.
l Mining in Sariska Tiger Reserve in Aravallis

The Aravalli range is spread over about 692 km in the North-west
India covering Gujarat, Rajasthan, Haryana and Delhi. The hill
region is very rich in biodiversity as well as mineral resources.
The Sariska tiger reserve has gentle slopy hills, vertical rocky
valleys, flat plains as well as deep gorges. The reserve is very rich
in wild life and has enormous mineral reserves like quartzite,
Schists, marble and granite in abundance.
Mining operations within and around the Sariska Tiger reserve
has left many areas permanently infertile and barren. The precious
wild life is under serious threat. We must preserve the Aravalli
series as a National Heritage and the Supreme Court on December
31st, 1991 has given a judgement in response to a Public Interest
Litigation of Tarun Bharat Sangh, an NGO wherein both Centre
and State Government of Rajasthan have been directed to ensure
that all mining activity within the park be stopped. More than
400 mines were shut immediately. But, still some illegal mining is
in progress.
l Uranium Mining in Nalgonda, A.P.The public hearing

The present reserves of Uranium in Jaduguda mines, Jharkhand
can supply the yellow cake only till 2004. There is a pressing need
for mining more uranium to meet the demands of Indias nuclear
programme. The Uranium Corporation of India (UCIL) proposes
to mine uranium from the deposits in Lambapur and Peddagattu
villages of Nalgonda district in Andhra Pradesh and a processing
unit at about 18 kms at Mallapur. The plan is to extract the ore of
11.02 million tons in 20 years. The IUCL is trying its best to allure
the villagers through employment opportunities. But, experts
charge the company for keeping silence on the possible
contamination of water bodies in the area. The proposed mines
are just 1 km from human habitation and hardly 10 km from
Nagarjun Sagar Dam and barely 4 km from the Akkampalli
reservoir which is Hyderabads new source of drinking water.
It is estimated that 20 years of mining would generate about 7.5
million metric tones of radioactive waste of which 99.9% will be
left behind. The villagers are very likely to be affected by the
radioactive wastes. Though IUCL claims that there wont be any
such accidents, but no one can deny that it is a highly hazardous
industry and safety measures cannot be overlooked. The pathetic
condition of Jaduguda Uranium mines in Jharkhand where there
is a black history of massive deaths and devastation have outraged
the public, who dont want it to be repeated for Nalgonda.
The proposed mines would cover about 445 ha of Yellapurum
Reserve Forest and the Rajiv Gandhi Tiger Sanctuary. The public
hearing held just recently in February, 2004 witnessed strong
protests from NGOs and many villagers. The fate of the proposed
mining is yet to be decided.
2.4 FOOD RESOURCES

We have thousands of edible plants and animals over the world out of
which only about three dozen types constitute the major food of hu-
mans. The main food resources include wheat, rice, maize, potato,
barley, oats, cassava, sweet potato, sugarcane, pulses, sorghum, millet,
about twenty or so common fruits and vegetables, milk, meat, fish and
seafood. Amongst these rice, wheat and maize are the major grains,
about 1500 million metric tons of which are grown each year, which is
about half of all the agricultural crops. About 4 billion people in the
developing countries have wheat and rice as their staple food.
Meat and milk are mainly consumed by more developed nations
of North America, Europe and Japan who consume about 80% of the
total. Fish and sea-food contribute about 70 million metric tons of high
quality protein to the worlds diet. But there are indications that we
have already surpassed sustainable harvests of fish from most of the
worlds oceans.
The Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO) of United Na-
tions estimated that on an average the minimum caloric intake on a
global scale is 2,500 calories/day. People receiving less than 90% of
these minimum dietary calories are called undernourished and if it is
less than 80% they are said to be seriously undernourished. Besides
the minimum caloric intake we also need proteins, minerals etc. Defi-
ciency or lack of nutrition often leads to malnutrition resulting in sev-
eral diseases as shown in Table 2.4.1.
Table 2.4.1. Impacts of malnutrition
Deficiency Health Effect No. of Cases Deaths per year

(in millions)
Proteins and Stunted growth, 750 15-20

Calories Kwashiorkor, 1 million
Marasmus
Iron Anemia 350 million 0.75-1
Iodine Goitre, Cretinism 150 million,
6 million
Vitamin A Blindness 6 million
n WORLD FOOD PROBLEMS

During the last 50 years world grain production has increased almost
three times, thereby increasing per capita production by about 50%.
But, at the same time population growth increased at such a rate in
LDCs (Less developed countries) that it outstripped food production.
Every year 40 million people (fifty percent of which are young children
between 1 to 5 years) die of undernourishment and malnutrition. This
means that every year our food problem is killing as many people as were
killed by the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima during World War II.
These startling statistical figures more than emphasize the need to
increase our food production, equitably distribute it and also to control
population growth.
Indian Scenario: Although India is the third largest producer of
staple crops, an estimated 300 million Indians are still undernourished.
India has only half as much 1and as USA, but it has nearly three times
population to feed. Our food problems are directly related to popula-
tion.
The World Food Summit, 1996 has set the target to reduce the
number of undernourished to just half by 2015, which still means 410
million undernourished people on the earth.
n IMPACTS OF OVERGRAZING AND AGRICULTURE

(A) Overgrazing
Livestock wealth plays a crucial role in the rural life of our country.
India leads in live stock population in the world. The huge population
of livestock needs to be fed and the grazing lands or pasture areas are
not adequate. Very often we find that the live stock grazing on a
particular piece of grassland or pasture surpass the carrying capacity.
Carrying capacity of any system is the maximum population that can
be supported by it on a sustainable basis. However, most often, the
grazing pressure is so high that its carrying capacity is crossed and the
sustainability of the grazing lands fails. Let us see what are the impacts
of overgrazing.
Impact of Overgrazing
(i) Land Degradation: Overgrazing removes the vegetal cover
over the soil and the exposed soil gets compacted due to which the
operative soil depth declines. So the roots cannot go much deep into
the soil and adequate soil moisture is not available. Organic recycling
also declines in the ecosystem because not enough detritus or litter
remains on the soil to be decomposed. The humus content of the soil

decreases and overgrazing leads to organically poor, dry, compacted
soil. Due to trampling by cattle the soil loses infiltration capacity, which
reduces percolation of water into the soil and as a result of this more
water gets lost from the ecosystem along with surface run off. Thus
over grazing leads to multiple actions resulting in loss of soil structure,
hydraulic conductivity and soil fertility.
(ii) Soil Erosion: Due to overgrazing by cattle, the cover of veg-
etation almost gets removed from the land. The soil becomes exposed
and gets eroded by the action of strong wind, rainfall etc. The grass
roots are very good binders of soil. When the grasses are removed, the
soil becomes loose and susceptible to the action of wind and water.
(iii) Loss of useful species: Overgrazing adversely affects the
composition of plant population and their regeneration capacity. The
original grassland consists of good quality grasses and forbs with high
nutritive value. When the livestock graze upon them heavily, even the
root stocks which carry the reserve food for regeneration get destroyed.
Now some other species appear in their place. These secondary species
are hardier and are less nutritive in nature. Some livestock keep on
overgrazing on these species also. Ultimately the nutritious, juicy fodder
giving species like Cenchrus, Dichanthium, Panicum and Heteropogon etc.
are replaced by unpalatable and sometimes thorny plants like
Parthenium, Lantana, Xanthium etc. These species do not have a good
capacity of binding the soil particles and, therefore, the soil becomes
more prone to soil erosion.
As a result of overgrazing vast areas in Arunachal Pradesh and
Meghalaya are getting invaded by thorny bushes, weeds etc. of low
fodder value. Thus overgrazing makes the grazing land lose its
regenerating capacity and once good quality pasture land gets converted
into an ecosystem with poor quality thorny vegetation.
(B) Agriculture
In the early years of human existence on this earth, man was just
a hunter gatherer and was quite like other animal species. Some 10,000
to 12,000 years ago he took to agriculture by cultivating plants of his
own choice. He used the practice of Slash and burn cultivation or
shifting cultivation, which is still prevalent in many tribal areas, as in
the North East Hills of India. The type of agriculture practiced these
days is very different from the traditional ones and their outputs in
terms of yield as well as their impacts on the environment show lots of
differences.
1. Traditional agriculture and its impacts: It usually involves a

small plot, simple tools, naturally available water, organic fertilizer and
a mix of crops. It is more near to natural conditions and usually it
results in low production. It is still practiced by about half the global
population.
The main impacts of this type of agriculture are as follows:
(i) Deforestation: The slash and burn of trees in forests to clear
the land for cultivation and frequent shifting result in loss of forest
cover.
(ii) Soil erosion: Clearing of forest cover exposes the soil to wind,
rain and storms, thereby resulting in loss of top fertile layer of soil.
(iii) Depletion of nutrients: During slash and burn the organic
matter in the soil gets destroyed and most of the nutrients are taken up
by the crops within a short period, thus making the soil nutrient poor
which makes the cultivators shift to another area.
2. Modern Agriculture and its impacts: It makes use of hybrid
seeds of selected and single crop variety, high-tech equipments and lots
of energy subsidies in the form of fertilizers, pesticides and irrigation
water. The food production has increased tremendously, evidenced by
green revolution. However, it also gave rise to several problematic
off-shoots as discussed below:
(i) Impacts related to high yielding varieties (HYV): The uses
of HYVs encourage monoculture i.e. the same genotype is grown over
vast areas. In case of an attack by some pathogen, there is total devas-
tation of the crop by the disease due to exactly uniform conditions,
which help in rapid spread of the disease.
(ii) Fertilizer related problems:
(a) Micronutrient imbalance: Most of the chemical fertilizers
used in modern agriculture have nitrogen, phosphorus and
potassium (N, P, K) which are essential macronutrients. Farm-
ers usually use these fertilizers indiscriminately to boost up
crop growth. Excessive use of fertilizers cause micronutrient
imbalance. For example, excessive fertilizer use in Punjab and
Haryana has caused deficiency of the micronutrient zinc in
the soils, which is affecting productivity of the soil.
(b) Nitrate Pollution: Nitrogenous fertilizers applied in the fields
often leach deep into the soil and ultimately contaminate the
ground water. The nitrates get concentrated in the water and
when their concentration exceeds 25 mg/L, they become the
cause of a serious health hazard called Blue Baby
Syndrome or methaemoglobinemia. This disease affects the
infants to the maximum extent causing even death. In

Denmark, England, France, Germany and Netherlands this
problem is quite prevalent. In India also, problem of nitrate
pollution exists in many areas.
(c) Eutrophication: Excessive use of N and P fertilizers in the
agricultural fields leads to another problem, which is not
related to the soil, but relates to water bodies like lakes. A
large proportion of nitrogen and phosphorus used in crop fields
is washed off and along with runoff water reach the water
bodies causing over nourishment of the lakes, a process known
as Eutrophication (eu=more, trophic=nutrition). Due to
eutrophication the lakes get invaded by algal blooms. These
algal species grow very fast by rapidly using up the nutrients.
They are often toxic and badly affect the food chain. The algal
species quickly complete their life cycle and die thereby adding
a lot of dead organic matter. The fishes are also killed and
there is a lot of dead matter that starts getting decomposed.
Oxygen is consumed in the process of decomposition and very
soon the water gets depleted of dissolved oxygen. This further
affects aquatic fauna and ultimately anaerobic conditions are
created where only pathogenic anaerobic bacteria can survive.
Thus, due to excessive use of fertilizers in the agricultural fields
the lake ecosystem gets degraded. This shows how an
unmindful action can have far reaching impacts.
(iii) Pesticide related problems: Thousands of types of pesticides
are used in agriculture. The first generation pesticides include chemicals
like sulphur, arsenic, lead or mercury to kill the pests. DDT
(Dichlorodiphenyl trichloroethane) whose insecticidal properties were
discovered by Paul Mueller in 1939 belongs to the second generation
pesticides. After 1940, a large number of synthetic pesticides came into
use. Although these pesticides have gone a long way in protecting our
crops from huge losses occurring due to pests, yet they have a number
of side-effects, as discussed below:
(a) Creating resistance in pests and producing new pests: Some
individuals of the pest species usually survive even after
pesticide spray. The survivors give rise to highly resistant
generations. About 20 species of pests are now known which
have become immune to all types of pesticides and are known
as Super pests.
(b) Death of non-target organisms: Many insecticides are broad
spectrum poisons which not only kill the target species but
also several non-target species that are useful to us.
(c) Biological magnification: Many of the pesticides are non-

biodegradable and keep on accumulating in the food chain, a
process called biological magnification. Since human beings
occupy a high trophic level in the food chain, hence they get
the pesticides in a bio-magnified form which is very harmful.
(iv) Water Logging: Over irrigation of croplands by farmers for
good growth of their crop usually leads to waterlogging. Inadequate
drainage causes excess water to accumulate underground and gradually
forms a continuous column with the water table. Under water-logged
conditions, pore-spaces in the soil get fully drenched with water and
the soil-air gets depleted. The water table rises while the roots of plants
do not get adequate air for respiration. Mechanical strength of the soil
declines, the crop plants get lodged and crop yield falls.
In Punjab and Haryana, extensive areas have become water-logged
where adequate canal water supply or tube-well water encouraged the
farmers to use it over- enthusiastically leading to water-logging problem.
Preventing excessive irrigation, sub-surface drainage technology
and bio-drainage with trees like Eucalyptus are some of the remedial
measures to prevent water-logging.
(v) Salinity problem: At present one third of the total cultivable
land area of the world is affected by salts. In India about seven million
hectares of land are estimated to be saltaffected which may be saline
or sodic. Saline soils are characterized by the accumulation of soluble
salts like sodium chloride, sodium sulphate, calcium chloride,
magnesium chloride etc. in the soil profile. Their electrical conductivity
is more than 4 dS/m. Sodic soils have carbonates and bicarbonates of
sodium, the pH usually exceeds 8.0 and the exchangeable sodium
percentage (ESP) is more than 15%.
Causes: A Major cause of salinization of soil is excessive irrigation.
About 20% of the worlds croplands receive irrigation with canal water
or ground water which unlike rainwater often contains dissolved salts.
Under dry climates, the water evaporates leaving behind salts in the
upper soil profile (Fig. 2.4.1)
Thousands of hectares of land area in Haryana and Punjab are
affected by soil salinity and alkalinity. Salinity causes stunted plant
growth and lowers crop yield. Most of the crops cannot tolerate high
salinity.
Evaporation and transpiration
Salt
crust Upper soil profile
containing salts
Percolation
of saline
irrigation
water
ing
Water logg
Less permeable
Salinization clay layer
Addition of salts with saline
Waterlogging
irrigation water
Evapo-transpiration leaves Rain water and irrigation
behind salts water percolate down
Salt-build up occurs in upper Water table rises
soil profile
Fig. 2.4.1. Salinization and water logging.
Remedy: The most common method for getting rid of salts is to

flush them out by applying more good quality water to such soils.
Another method is laying underground network of perforated drainage
pipes for flushing out the salts slowly. This sub-surface drainage system
has been tried in the experimental station of CSSRI at Sampla, Haryana.
The Central Soil Salinity Research Institute (CSSRI) located in Karnal,
Haryana has to its achievement the success story of converting Zarifa
Viran village to Zarifa Abad i.e. from the barren land to productive land
through its research applications.
CASE STUDIES
Salinity and water logging in Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan :

The first alarming report of salt-affected wasteland formation in
connection with irrigation practices came from Haryana (then
Punjab) in 1858. It was reported that several villages in Panipat,
Rohtak and Delhi lying in command area of Western Yamuna
Canal were suffering from destructive saline efflorescence. The
Reh Committee in 1886 drew the attention of the government
on some vital points showing a close relationship between
irrigation, drainage and spread of reh and usar soils.
(Contd.)
The floods of 1947, 1950, 1952, 1954-56 in Punjab resulted in

aggravated water logging with serious drainage problems.
Introduction of canal irrigation in 1.2 m ha in Haryana resulted
in rise in water-table followed by water-logging and salinity in
many irrigated areas causing huge economic losses as a result of
fall in crop productivity. Rajasthan too has suffered badly in this
regard following the biggest irrigation project Indira Gandhi
Canal Project and the sufferings of a big area in Western
Rajasthan have changed from a condition of water-starved
wasteland to that of a water soaked wasteland.
2.5. ENERGY RESOURCES

Energy consumption of a nation is usually considered as an index of
its development. This is because almost all the developmental activities
are directly or indirectly dependent upon energy. We find wide
disparities in per capita energy use between the developed and the
developing nations.
The first form of energy technology probably was the fire, which
produced heat and the early man used it for cooking and heating
purposes. Wind and hydropower have also been in use for the last 10,000
years. The invention of steam engines replaced the burning of wood by
coal and coal was later replaced to a great extent by oil. In 1970s due
to Iranian revolution and Arab oil embargo the prices of oil shooted
up. This ultimately led to exploration and use of several alternate sources
of energy.
n GROWING ENERGY NEEDS

Development in different sectors relies largely upon energy. Agriculture,
industry, mining, transportation, lighting, cooling and heating in
buildings all need energy. With the demands of growing population
the world is facing further energy deficit. The fossil fuels like coal, oil
and natural gas which at present are supplying 95% of the commercial
energy of the world resources and are not going to last for many more
years. Our life style is changing very fast and from a simple way of life
we are shifting to a luxurious life style. If you just look at the number of
electric gadgets in your homes and the number of private cars and
scooters in your locality you will realize that in the last few years they
have multiplied many folds and all of them consume energy.
Developed countries like U.S.A. and Canada constitute about 5%
of the worlds population but consume one fourth of global energy
resources. An average person there consumes 300 GJ (Giga Joules,
equal to 60 barrels of oils) per year. By contrast, an average man in a
poor country like Bhutan, Nepal or Ethiopia consumes less than 1 GJ
in a year. So a person in a rich country consumes almost as much energy
in a single day as one person does in a whole year in a poor country.
This clearly shows that our life-style and standard of living are closely
related to energy needs. Fig. 2.5.1 shows the strong correlation between
per capita energy use and GNP (Gross National product). U.S.A.,
Norway, Switzerland etc. with high GNP show high energy use while
India, China etc have low GNP and low energy use. Bahrain and Quatar
are oil rich states (UAE) and hence their energy consumption and GNP
are more, although their development is not that high.
600
UAE
Energy consumption in GJ per capita
450
Canada USA
300 Kuwait Norway
Sweden
Russia Germany
150
UK
Greece Switzerland
50
China Argentina Denmark
Japan
Egypt
India
0
10,000 20,000 30,000 40,000
Ethiopia
Gross National Product (GNP)
$ per capita
Fig. 2.5.1. Per capita energy use and GNP

(Data from World Resources Institute, 1997)
n RENEWABLE AND NON-RENEWABLE ENERGY SOURCES

A source of energy is one that can provide adequate amount of energy
in a usable form over a long period of time. These sources can be of
two types:
(1) Renewable Resources which can be generated continuously
in nature and are inexhaustible e.g. wood, solar energy, wind
energy, tidal energy, hydropower, biomass energy, bio-fuels,
geo-thermal energy and hydrogen. They are also known as
non-conventional sources of energy and they can be used again
and again in an endless manner.
(2) Non-renewable Resources which have accumulated in
nature over a long span of time and cannot be quickly
replenished when exhausted e.g. coal, petroleum, natural gas
and nuclear fuels like uranium and thorium.
Wood is a renewable resource as we can get new wood by growing
a sapling into a tree within 15-20 years but it has taken millions of
years for the formation of coal from trees and cannot be regenerated in
our life time, hence coal is not renewable. We will now discuss various
forms of renewable and non-renewable energy resource.
(a) Renewable Energy Resources

Solar energy: Sun is the ultimate source of energy, directly or
indirectly for all other forms of energy. The nuclear fusion reactions
occurring inside the sun release enormous quantities of energy in the
form of heat and light. The solar energy received by the near earth
space is approximately 1.4 kilojoules/second/m2 known as solar con-
stant.
Traditionally, we have been using solar energy for drying clothes
and food-grains, preservation of eatables and for obtaining salt from
sea-water. Now we have several techniques for harnessing solar en-
ergy. Some important solar energy harvesting devices are discussed
here.
(i) Solar heat collectors: These can be passive or active in nature.
Passive solar heat collectors are natural materials like stones, bricks
etc. or material like glass which absorb heat during the day time and
release it slowly at night. Active solar collectors pump a heat absorbing
medium (air or water) through a small collector which is normally
placed on the top of the building.
(ii) Solar cells: They are also known as photovoltaic cells or PV
cells. Solar cells are made of thin wafers of semi conductor materials
like silicon and gallium. When solar radiations fall on them, a potential
difference is produced which causes flow of electrons and produces
electricity. Silicon can be obtained from silica or sand, which is
abundantly available and inexpensive. By using gallium arsenide,
cadmium sulphide or boron, efficiency of the PV cells can be improved.
The potential difference produced by a single PV cell of 4 cm2 size is
about 0.4-0.5 volts and produces a current of 60 milli amperes.
Fig. 2.5.2 (a) shows the structure of a solar cell.
Boron enriched
silicon
Solar
Phosphorus radiations
enriched
silicon
Electric
bulb
Junction
DC electricity
Solar cell (PV cell)
Fig. 2.5.2. (a) Solar cell.

Solar
radiations
Solar cell
Electric Solar cell

motor Battery panel
Water pump
Fig. 2.5.2. (b) A solar pump run by electricity produced by solar cells.
A group of solar cells joined together in a definite pattern form a
solar panel which can harness a large amount of solar energy and can
produce electricity enough to run street-light, irrigation water pump
etc. (Fig. 2.5.2).
Solar cells are widely used in calculators, electronic watches, street
lighting, traffic signals, water pumps etc. They are also used in artifi-
cial satellites for electricity generation. Solar cells are used for running
radio and television also. They are more in use in remote areas where
conventional electricity supply is a problem.
(iii) Solar cooker: Solar cookers make use of solar heat by
reflecting the solar radiations using a mirror directly on to a glass sheet
Solar
radiations
Plane mirror
(reflector)
Inside
blackened
metallic box
Glass
cover
Blackened
metallic container
for cooking food
Fig. 2.5.3. Simple box-type solar cooker.

which covers the black insulated box within which the raw food is kept
as shown in Fig. 2.5.3. A new design of solar cooker is now available
which involves a spherical reflector (concave or parabolic reflector)
instead of plane mirror that has more heating effect and hence greater
efficiency.
The food cooked in solar cookers is more nutritious due to slow
heating. However it has the limitation that it cannot be used at night or
on cloudy days. Moreover, the direction of the cooker has to be adjusted
according to the direction of the sun rays.
(iv) Solar water heater: It consists of an insulated box painted black
from inside and having a glass lid to receive and store solar heat. Inside
the box it has black painted copper coil through which cold water is
made to flow in, which gets heated and flows out into a storage tank.
The hot water from the storage tank fitted on roof top is then supplied
through pipes into buildings like hotels and hospitals.
(v) Solar furnace: Here thousands of small plane mirrors are ar-
ranged in concave reflectors, all of which collect the solar heat and
produce as high a temperature as 3000°C.
(vi) Solar power plant: Solar energy is harnessed on a large scale
by using concave reflectors which cause boiling of water to produce
steam. The steam turbine drives a generator to produce electricity. A
solar power plant (50 K Watt capacity) has been installed at Gurgaon,
Haryana.
n WIND ENERGY
The high speed winds have a lot of energy in them as kinetic energy
due to their motion. The driving force of the winds is the sun. The
wind energy is harnessed by making use of wind mills. The blades of
the wind mill keep on rotating continuously due to the force of the
striking wind. The rotational motion of the blades drives a number of
machines like water pumps, flour mills and electric generators. A large
number of wind mills are installed in clusters called wind farms, which
feed power to the utility grid and produce a large amount of electricity.
These farms are ideally located in coastal regions, open grasslands or
hilly regions, particularly mountain passes and ridges where the winds
are strong and steady. The minimum wind speed required for
satisfactory working of a wind generator is 15 km/hr.
The wind power potential of our country is estimated to be
about 20,000 MW, while at present we are generating about 1020
MW. The largest wind farm of our country is near Kanyakumari in
Tamil Nadu generating 380 MW electricity.
Wind energy is very useful as it does not cause any air pollution.
After the initial installation cost, the wind energy is very cheap. It is
believed that by the middle of the century wind power would supply
more than 10% of worlds electricity.
n HYDROPOWER
The water flowing in a river is collected by constructing a big dam
where the water is stored and allowed to fall from a height. The blades
of the turbine located at the bottom of the dam move with the fast
moving water which in turn rotate the generator and produces
electricity. We can also construct mini or micro hydel power plants on
the rivers in hilly regions for harnessing the hydro energy on a small
scale, but the minimum height of the water falls should be 10 metres.
The hydropower potential of India is estimated to be about 4 × 1011
KW-hours. Till now we have utilized only a little more than 11% of
this potential.
Hydropower does not cause any pollution, it is renewable and
normally the hydro power projects are multi-purpose projects helping
in controlling floods, used for irrigation, navigation etc. However, big
dams are often associated with a number of environmental impacts
which have already been discussed in the previous section.
n TIDAL ENERGY
Ocean tides produced by gravitational forces of sun and moon contain
enormous amounts of energy. The high tide and low tide refer to
the rise and fall of water in the oceans. A difference of several meters is
required between the height of high and low tide to spin the turbines.
The tidal energy can be harnessed by constructing a tidal barrage.
During high tide, the sea-water flows into the reservoir of the barrage
and turns the turbine, which in turn produces electricity by rotating
the generators. During low tide, when the sea-level is low, the sea water
stored in the barrage reservoir flows out into the sea and again turns
the turbines. (Fig. 2.5.4)
There are only a few sites in the world where tidal energy can be
suitably harnessed. The bay of Fundy Canada having 17-18 m high
tides has a potential of 5,000 MW of power generation. The tidal mill
at La Rance, France is one of the first modern tidal power mill. In
India Gulf of Cambay, Gulf of Kutch and the Sunder bans deltas are
the tidal power sites.
Tidal barrage
Sea (High tide)
Reservoir
(a)
Water stored
at high tide
in reservoir
Turbine
Sea
Low
tide
(b)
Fig. 2.5.4. Water flows into the reservoir to turn the turbine
at high tide (a), and flows out from the reservoir to the
sea, again turning the turbine at low tide (b).
n OCEAN THERMAL ENERGY (OTE)

The energy available due to the difference in temperature of water at
the surface of the tropical oceans and at deeper levels is called Ocean
Thermal Energy. A difference of 20°C or more is required between
surface water and deeper water of ocean for operating OTEC (Ocean
Thermal Energy Conversion) power plants. The warm surface water
of ocean is used to boil a liquid like ammonia. The high pressure vapours
of the liquid formed by boiling are then used to turn the turbine of a
generator and produce electricity. The colder water from the deeper
oceans is pumped to cool and condense the vapours into liquid. Thus
the process keeps on going continuously for 24 hours a day.
n GEOTHERMAL ENERGY
The energy harnessed from the hot rocks present inside the earth is
called geothermal energy. High temperature, high pressure steam fields
exist below the earths surface in many places. This heat comes from
the fission of radioactive material naturally present in the rocks. In
some places, the steam or the hot water comes out of the ground
naturally through cracks in the form of natural geysers as in Manikaran,
Kullu and Sohana, Haryana. Sometimes the steam or boiling water
underneath the earth do not find any place to come out. We can
artificially drill a hole up to the hot rocks and by putting a pipe in it
make the steam or hot water gush out through the pipe at high pressure
which turns the turbine of a generator to produce electricty. In USA
and New Zealand, there are several geothermal plants working
successfully.
n BIOMASS ENERGY
Biomass is the organic matter produced by the plants or animals which
include wood, crop residues, cattle dung, manure, sewage, agricultural
wastes etc. Biomass energy is of the following types :
(a) Energy Plantations: Solar energy is trapped by green plants
through photosynthesis and converted into biomass energy. Fast grow-
ing trees like cottonwood, poplar and Leucaena, non-woody herbaceous
grasses, crop plants like sugarcane, sweet sorghum and sugar beet,
aquatic weeds like water hyacinth and sea-weeds and carbohydrate rich
potato, cereal etc. are some of the important energy plantations. They
may produce energy either by burning directly or by getting converted
into burnable gas or may be converted into fuels by fermentation.
(b) Petro-crops: Certain latex-containing plants like Euphorbias
and oil palms are rich in hydrocarbons and can yield an oil like sub-
stance under high temperature and pressure. This oily material may be
burned in diesel engines directly or may be refined to form gasoline.
These plants are popularly known as petro-crops.
(c) Agricultural and Urban Waste biomass: Crop residues,
bagasse (sugarcane residues), coconut shells, peanut hulls, cotton stalks
etc. are some of the common agricultural wastes which produce energy
by burning. Animal dung, fishery and poultry waste and even human
refuse are examples of biomass energy. In Brazil 30 % of electricity is
obtained from burning bagasse. In rural India, animal dung cakes are
burnt to produce heat. About 80 % of rural heat energy requirements
are met by burning agricultural wastes, wood and animal dung cakes.
In rural areas these forms of waste biomass are burned in open

furnaces called Chulhas which usually produce smoke and are not
so efficient (efficiency is <8 %). Now improved Chulhas with tall
chimney have been designed which have high efficiency and are
smokeless.
The burning of plant residues or animal wastes cause air pollution
and produce a lot of ash as waste residue. The burning of dung destroys
essential nutrients like N and P. It is therefore, more useful to convert
the biomass into biogas or bio fuels.
n BIOGAS
Biogas is a mixture of methane, carbon dioxide, hydrogen and hydrogen
sulphide, the major constituent being methane. Biogas is produced by
anaerobic degradation of animal wastes (sometimes plant wastes) in
the presence of water. Anaerobic degradation means break down of
organic matter by bacteria in the absence of oxygen.
Biogas is a non-polluting, clean and low cost fuel which is very
useful for rural areas where a lot of animal waste and agricultural waste
are available. India has the largest cattle population in the world (240
million) and has tremendous potential for biogas production. From
cattle dung alone, we can produce biogas of a magnitude of 22,500
Mm3 annually. A sixty cubic feet gobar gas plant can serve the needs of
one average family.
Biogas has the following main advantages : It is clean, non-
polluting and cheap. There is direct supply of gas from the plant and
there is no storage problem. The sludge left over is a rich fertilizer
containing bacterial biomass with most of the nutrients preserved as
such. Air-tight digestion/degradation of the animal wastes is safe as it
eliminates health hazards which normally occur in case of direct use of
dung due to direct exposure to faecal pathogens and parasites.
Biogas plants used in our country are basically of two types:
1. Floating gas-holder type and 2. Fixed-dome type.
1. Floating gas holder type biogas plant: This type has a well-
shaped digester tank which is placed under the ground and made up of
bricks. In the digester tank, over the dung slurry an inverted steel drum
floats to hold the bio-gas produced. The gas holder can move which is
controlled by a pipe and the gas outlet is regulated by a valve. The
digester tank has a partition wall and one side of it receives the dung-
water mixture through inlet pipe while the other side discharges the
spent slurry through outlet pipe. (Fig 2.5.5)
Mixing Floating
Slurry tank Biogas
biogas holder supply outlet Overflow
(Cattle dung + water) tank
Ground
level
Outlet Spent
Inlet slurry
pipe pipe
Underground
digester tank
Fig. 2.5.5. Floating gas holder type biogas plant.
Sometimes corrosion of steel gas-holder leads to leakage of

biogas. The tank has to be painted time and again for maintenance
which increases the cost. Hence another type was designed as
discussed below :
2. Fixed dome type biogas plant: The structure is almost similar
to that of the previous type. However, instead of a steel gas-holder there
is dome shaped roof made of cement and bricks. Instead of partition-
ing, here there is a single unit in the main digester but it has inlet and
outlet chambers as shown in Fig 2.5.6.
Mixing
tank Slurry Fixed Biogas supply
dome outlet
Slab cover
Overflow tank
Ground level
Biogas
Inlet Spent
chamber slurry
Outlet
chamber
Underground
digester tank
Fig. 2.5.6. Fixed dome type Biogas plant.
The Ministry of Non-Conventional Energy Sources (MNES) has

been promoting the Biogas Programme in India. Out of the various
models, the important ones used in rural set-up are KVIC Model
(Floating drum type), Janta Model (Fixed dome type), Deenbandhu

Model (Fixed dome type), Pragati Model (floating drum type), Ganesh
Model (KVIC type but made of bamboo and polythene sheet) and
Ferro-cement digester Model (KVIC type with ferro-cement digester).
n BIOFUELS
Biomass can be fermented to alcohols like ethanol and methanol which
can be used as fuels. Ethanol can be easily produced from carbohydrate
rich substances like sugarcane. It burns clean and is non-polluting.
However, as compared to petrol its calorific value is less and therefore,
produces much less heat than petrol.
Gasohol is a common fuel used in Brazil and Zimbabwe for
running cars and buses. In India too gasohol is planned to be used on
trial basis in some parts of the country, to start with in Kanpur. Gasohol
is a mixture of ethanol and gasoline.
Methanol is very useful since it burns at a lower temperature than
gasoline or diesel. Thus the bulky radiator may be substituted by sleek
designs in our cars. Methanol too is a clean, non-polluting fuel.
Methanol can be easily obtained from woody plants and ethanol
from grain-based or sugar-containing plants.
n HYDROGEN AS A FUEL
As hydrogen burns in air, it combines with oxygen to form water and a
large amount of energy (150 kilojoules per gram) is released. Due to its
high, rather the highest calorific value, hydrogen can serve as an excel-
lent fuel. Moreover, it is non-polluting and can be easily produced.
Production of Hydrogen is possible by thermal dissociation, photoly-
sis or electrolysis of water:
(i) By thermal dissociation of water (at 3000°K or above)
hydrogen (H2) is produced.
(ii) Thermochemically, hydrogen is produced by chemical reaction
of water with some other chemicals in 2-3 cycles so that we do not
need the high temperatures as in direct thermal method and ultimately
H2 is produced.
(iii) Electrolytic method dissociates water into hydrogen (H2) and
oxygen by making a current flow through it.
(iv) Photolysis of water involves breakdown of water in the
presence of sun light to release hydrogen. Green plants also have
photolysis of water during photosynthesis. Efforts are underway to trap
hydrogen molecule which is produced during photosynthesis.
However, hydrogen is highly inflammable and explosive in nature.

Hence, safe handling is required for using H2 as a fuel. Also, it is difficult
to store and transport. And, being very light, it would have to be stored
in bulk.
Presently, H2 is used in the form of liquid hydrogen as a fuel in
spaceships.
(b) Non-Renewable Energy Sources
These are the fossil fuels like coal, petroleum, natural gas and nuclear
fuels. These were formed by the decomposition of the remains of plants
and animals buried under the earth millions of years ago. The fuels are
very precious because they have taken such a long time to be formed
and if we exhaust their reserves at such a fast rate as we have been
doing, ever since we discovered them, then very soon we will lose these
resources forever.
n COAL
Coal was formed 255-350 million years ago in the hot, damp
regions of the earth during the carboniferous age. The ancient plants
along the banks of rivers and swamps were buried after death into the
soil and due to the heat and pressure gradually got converted into peat
and coal over millions of years of time. There are mainly three types of
coal, namely anthracite (hard coal), bituminous (Soft coal) and lignite
(brown coal). Anthracite coal has maximum carbon (90%) and calorific
value (8700 kcal/kg.) Bituminous, lignite and peat contain 80, 70 and
60% carbon, respectively. Coal is the most abundant fossil fuel in the
world. At the present rate of usage, the coal reserves are likely to last
for about 200 years and if its use increases by 2% per year, then it will
last for another 65 years.
India has about 5% of worlds coal and Indian coal is not very
good in terms of heat capacity. Major coal fields in India are Raniganj,
Jharia, Bokaro, Singrauli, and Godavari valley. The coal states of India
are Jharkhand, Orissa, West Bengal, Madhya Pradesh, Andhra Pradesh
and Maharashtra. Anthracite coal occurs only in J & K.
When coal is burnt it produces carbon dioxide, which is a
greenhouse gas responsible for causing enhanced global warming. Coal
also contains impurities like sulphur and therefore as it burns the smoke
contains toxic gases like oxides of sulphur and nitrogen.
n PETROLEUM
It is the lifeline of global economy. There are 13 countries in the
world having 67% of the petroleum reserves which together form the
OPEC (Organization of Petroleum exporting countries). About 1/4th

of the oil reserves are in Saudi Arabia.
At the present rate of usage, the worlds crude oil reserves are
estimated to get exhausted in just 40 years. Some optimists, however,
believe that there are some yet undiscovered reserves. Even then the
crude oil reserves will last for another 40 years or so. Crude petroleum
is a complex mixture of alkane hydrocarbons. Hence it has to be purified
and refined by the process of fractional distillation, during which process
different constituents separate out at different temperatures. We get a
large variety of products from this, namely, petroleum gas, kerosene,
petrol, diesel, fuel oil, lubricating oil, paraffin wax, asphalt, plastic etc.
Petroleum is a cleaner fuel as compared to coal as it burns
completely and leaves no residue. It is also easier to transport and use.
That is the reason why petroleum is preferred amongst all the fossil
fuels.
Liquefied petroleum gas (LPG): The main component of
petroleum is butane, the other being propane and ethane. The petroleum
gas is easily converted to liquid form under pressure as LPG. It is
odourless, but the LPG in our domestic gas cylinders gives a foul smell.
This is, in fact, due to ethyl mercaptan, a foul smelling gas, added to
LPG so that any leakage of LPG from the cylinder can be detected
instantaneously.
Oil fields in India are located at Digboi (Assam), Gujarat Plains
and Bombay High, offshore areas in deltaic coasts of Gadavari, Krishna,
Kaveri and Mahanadi.
n NATURAL GAS
It is mainly composed of methane (95%) with small amounts of
propane and ethane. It is a fossil fuel. Natural gas deposits mostly
accompany oil deposits because it has been formed by decomposing
remains of dead animals and plants buried under the earth. Natural
gas is the cleanest fossil fuel. It can be easily transported through
pipelines. It has a high calorific value of about 50KJ/G and burns
without any smoke.
Currently, the amount of natural gas deposits in the world are of
the order of 80, 450 g m3. Russia has maximum reserves (40%),
followed by Iran (14%) and USA (7%). Natural gas reserves are found
in association with all the oil fields in India. Some new gas fields have
been found in Tripura, Jaisalmer, Off-shore area of Mumbai and the
Krishna Godavari Delta.
Natural gas is used as a domestic and industrial fuel. It is used as

a fuel in thermal power plants for generating electricity. It is used as a
source of hydrogen gas in fertilizer industry and as a source of carbon
in tyre industry.
Compressed natural gas (CNG): It is being used as an alternative
to petrol and diesel for transport of vehicles. Delhi has totally switched
over to CNG where buses and auto rickshaws run on this new fuel.
CNG use has greatly reduced vehicular pollution in the city.
Synthetic natural gas (SNG): It is a mixture of carbon monoxide
and hydrogen. It is a connecting link between a fossil fuel and substituted
natural gas. Low grade coal is initially transformed into synthetic gas
by gasification followed by catalytic conversion to methane.
n NUCLEAR ENERGY
Nuclear energy is known for its high destructive power as
evidenced from nuclear weapons. The nuclear energy can also be
harnessed for providing commercial energy. Nuclear energy can be
generated by two types of reactions:
(i) Nuclear Fission: It is the nuclear change in which nucleus of
certain isotopes with large mass numbers are split into lighter nuclei
on bombardment by neutrons and a large amount of energy is released
through a chain reaction as shown in Fig. 2.5.7 (a).
Kr n
Energy n
Kr
Ba
n
Kr
n
235
n U
nucleus Ba n
n
Kr
Ba n
Ba n
n
Fig. 2.5.7. (a) Nuclear fission—a chain reaction initiated

by one neutron that bombards a Uranium (U235) nucleus,
releasing a huge quantity of energy, two smaller nuclei
(Ba, Kr) and 3 neutrons.
235 + 0n1 → 36Kr92 + 56Ba141 + 3 0n1 + Energy

92U
Nuclear Reactors make use of nuclear chain reaction. In order to
control the rate of fission, only 1 neutron released is allowed to strike
for splitting another nucleus. Uranium-235 nuclei are most commonly
used in nuclear reactors.
(ii) Nuclear fusion: Here two isotopes of a light element are forced
together at extremely high temperatures (1 billion °C) until they fuse to
form a heavier nucleus releasing enormous energy in the process. It is
difficult to initiate the process but it releases more energy than nuclear
fission. (Fig. 2.5.7 (b))
n
+
Hydrogen-2
+ +
(Deuterium)
Energy
+ + +
1 billion °C
Hydrogen-2
(Deuterium) Helium-3
nucleus
Fig. 2.5.7. ( b ) Nuclear fusion reaction between two

hydrogen-2 nuclei, which take place at a very high
temperature of 1 billion °C; one neutron and one fusion
nucleus of helium-3 is formed along with a huge amount
of energy.
1H + 1H2 → 3He2 + 0n1 + Energy

2
Two hydrogen-2 (Deuterium) atoms may fuse to form the nu-

cleus of Helium at 1 billion °C and release a huge amount of energy.
Nuclear fusion reaction can also take place between one Hydrogen-2
(Deuterium) and one Hydrogen-3 (Tritium) nucleus at 100 million °C
forming Helium-4 nucleus, one neutron and a huge amount of energy.
Nuclear energy has tremendous potential but any leakage from
the reactor may cause devastating nuclear pollution. Disposal of the
nuclear waste is also a big problem.
Nuclear power in India is still not very well developed. There are
four nuclear power stations with an installed capacity of 2005 MW.
These are located at Tarapur (Maharashtra), Rana Pratap Sagar
near Kota (Rajasthan), Kalpakkam (Tamil Nadu) and Narora (U.P.).
2.6. LAND RESOURCES
n LAND AS A RESOURCE
Land is a finite and valuable resource upon which we depend for our
food, fibre and fuel wood, the basic amenities of life. Soil, especially
the top soil, is classified as a renewable resource because it is
continuously regenerated by natural process though at a very slow rate.
About 200-1000 years are needed for the formation of one inch or 2.5
cm soil, depending upon the climate and the soil type. But, when rate
of erosion is faster than rate of renewal, then the soil becomes a non-
renewable resource.
n LAND DEGRADATION
With increasing population growth the demands for arable land for
producing food, fibre and fuel wood is also increasing. Hence there is
more and more pressure on the limited land resources which are getting
degraded due to over-exploitation. Soil degradation is a real cause of
alarm because soil formation is an extremely slow process as discussed
above and the average annual erosion rate is 20-100 times more than
the renewal rate.
Soil erosion, water-logging, salinization and contamination of the
soil with industrial wastes like fly-ash, press-mud or heavy metals all
cause degradation of land.
n SOIL EROSION
The literal meaning of soil erosion is wearing away of soil. Soil ero-
sion is defined as the movement of soil components, especially surface-
litter and top soil from one place to another. Soil erosion results in the
loss of fertility because it is the top soil layer which is fertile. If we look
at the world situation, we find that one third of the worlds cropland is
getting eroded. Two thirds of the seriously degraded lands lie in Asia
and Africa.
Soil erosion is basically of two types based upon the cause of
erosion:
(i) Normal erosion or geologic erosion: caused by the gradual
removal of top soil by natural processes which bring an equilibrium
between physical, biological and hydrological activities and maintain
a natural balance between erosion and renewal.
(ii) Accelerated erosion: This is mainly caused by anthropogenic

(man-made) activities and the rate of erosion is much faster than the
rate of formation of soil. Overgrazing, deforestation and mining are
some important activities causing accelerated erosion.
There are two types of agents which cause soil erosion:
(i) Climatic agents: water and wind are the climatic agents of
soil erosion. Water affects soil erosion in the form of torrential rains,
rapid flow of water along slopes, run-off, wave action and melting and
movement of snow.
Water induced soil erosion is of the following types:
l Sheet erosion: when there is uniform removal of a thin layer
of soil from a large surface area, it is called sheet erosion. This

is usually due to run-off water.
l Rill erosion: When there is rainfall and rapidly running water
produces finger-shaped grooves or rills over the area, it is called

rill erosion.
l Gully erosion: It is a more prominent type of soil erosion. When
the rainfall is very heavy, deeper cavities or gullies are formed,

which may be U or V shaped.
l Slip erosion: This occurs due to heavy rainfall on slopes of
hills and mountains.

l Stream bank erosion: During the rainy season, when fast run-
ning streams take a turn in some other direction, they cut the
soil and make caves in the banks.
Wind erosion is responsible for the following three types of
soil movements:
l Saltation: This occurs under the influence of direct pressure
of stormy wind and the soil particles of 1-1.5 mm diameter

move up in vertical direction.
l Suspension: Here fine soil particles (less than 1 mm dia) which
are suspended in the air are kicked up and taken away to

distant places.
l Surface creep: Here larger particles (5-10 mm diameter) creep
over the soil surface along with wind.

(ii) Biotic agents: Excessive grazing, mining and deforestation
are the major biotic agents responsible for soil erosion. Due to these
processes the top soil is disturbed or rendered devoid of vegetation cover.
So the land is directly exposed to the action of various physical forces
facilitating erosion. Overgrazing accounts for 35% of the worlds soil
erosion while deforestation is responsible for 30% of the earths

seriously eroded lands. Unsustainable methods of farming cause 28%
of soil erosion.
Deforestation without reforestation, overgrazing by cattle, sur-
face mining without land reclamation, irrigation techniques that lead
to salt build-up, water-logged soil, farming on land with unsuitable
terrain, soil compaction by agricultural machinery, action of cattle tram-
pling etc make the top soil vulnerable to erosion.
Soil Conservation Practices
In order to prevent soil erosion and conserve the soil the following
conservation practices are employed:
(i) Conservational till farming: In traditional method the land is
ploughed and the soil is broken up and smoothed to make a planting
surface. However, this disturbs the soil and makes it susceptible to ero-
sion when fallow (i.e. without crop cover). Conservational till farm-
ing, popularly known as no-till-farming causes minimum disturbance
to the top soil. Here special tillers break up and loosen the subsurface
soil without turning over the topsoil. The tilling machines make slits in
the unploughed soil and inject seeds, fertilizers, herbicides and a little
water in the slit, so that the seed germinates and the crop grows suc-
cessfully without competition with weeds.
(ii) Contour farming: On gentle slopes, crops are grown in rows
across, rather than up and down, a practice known as contour farming.
Each row planted horizontally along the slope of the land acts as a
small dam to help hold soil and slow down loss of soil through run-off
water.
(iii) Terracing: It is used on still steeper slopes are converted into
a series of broad terraces which run across the contour. Terracing retains
water for crops at all levels and cuts down soil erosion by controlling
run off. In high rainfall areas, ditches are also provided behind the
terrace to permit adequate drainage (Plate I, a).
(iv) Strip cropping: Here strips of crops are alternated with strips
of soil saving covercrops like grasses or grass-legume mixture. Whatever
run-off comes from the cropped soil is retained by the strip of cover-
crop and this reduces soil erosion. Nitrogen fixing legumes also help in
restoring soil fertility (Plate I, b).
Plate I(a) Terrace farming Plate I(b) Strip cropping

(vi) Alley cropping: It is a form of inter-cropping in which crops
are planted between rows of trees or shrubs. This is also called Agro
forestry. Even when the crop is harvested, the soil is not fallow because
trees and shrubs still remain on the soil holding the soil particles and
prevent soil erosion (Plate I, c).
Wind breaks or shelterbelts: They help in reducing erosion
caused by strong winds. The trees are planted in long rows along the
cultivated land boundary so that wind is blocked. The wind speed is
substantially reduced which helps in preventing wind erosion of soil
(Plate I, d).
Thus, soil erosion is one of the worlds most critical problems

and, if not slowed, will seriously reduce agricultural and forestry
production, and degrade the quality of aquatic ecosystems as well due
to increased siltation. Soil erosion, is in fact, a gradual process and
very often the cumulative effects becomes visible only when the damage
has already become irreversible. The best way to control soil erosion is
to maintain adequate vegetational cover over the soil.
Water Logging
In order to provide congenial moisture to the growing crops, farmers
usually apply heavy irrigation to their farmland. Also, in order to leach
down the salts deeper into the soil, the farmer provides more irrigation
water. However, due to inadequate drainage and poor quality irrigation

water there is accumulation of water underground and gradually it
forms a continuous column with the water table. We call these soils as
waterlogged soils which affect crop growth due to inhibition of exchange
of gases. The pore-spaces between the soil particles get fully drenched
with water through the roots.
Water logging is most often associated with salinity because the
water used for irrigation contains salts and the soils get badly degraded
due to erroneous irrigation practices. The damages caused by some
major irrigation projects is shown is Table 2.6.1.
Table 2.6.1. Water logging and salinisation caused due
to some irrigation projects in India
Area affected
(thousand hectares)
Irrigation Project State
Water Salinity
logging
Indira Gandhi Canal Rajasthan 43 29

Gandak Bihar, Gujarat 211 400
Chambal M.P., Rajasthan 98 40
Ram Ganga U.P. 195 352
Sri Ram Sagar Andhra Pradesh 60 1
Source : B.K. Garg and I.C. Gupta (1997).*
An estimated loss of Rs. 10,000 million per annum occurs due to
water-logging and salinity in India. It is a startling fact because the cost
of development of the irrigation projects is very high and in the long
run they cause problems like water logging and salinity thereby sharply
reducing soil fertility.
n LANDSLIDES
Various anthropogenic activities like hydroelectric projects, large dams,
reservoirs, construction of roads and railway lines, construction of
buildings, mining etc are responsible for clearing of large forested areas.
Earlier there were few reports of landslides between Rishikesh and Byasi
on Badrinath Highway area. But, after the highway was constructed,
15 landslides occurred in a single year. During construction of roads,
*Saline Wastelands, Environment and Plant Growth. Sci. Publ., India.

mining activities etc. huge portions of fragile mountainous areas are

cut or destroyed by dynamite and thrown into adjacent valleys and
streams. These land masses weaken the already fragile mountain slopes
and lead to landslides. They also increase the turbidity of various nearby
streams, thereby reducing their productivity.
n DESERTIFICATION
Desertification is a process whereby the productive potential of arid or
semiarid lands falls by ten percent or more. Moderate desertification is
10-25% drop in productivity, severe desertification causes 25-50% drop
while very severe desertification results in more than 50% drop in
productivity and usually creates huge gullies and sand dunes.
Desertification leads to the conversion of rangelands or irrigated
croplands to desert like conditions in which agricultural productivity
falls. Desertification is characterized by devegetation and loss of vegetal
over, depletion of groundwater, salinization and severe soil erosion.
Desertification is not the literal invasion of desert into a non-desert
area. It includes degradation of the ecosystems within as well as outside
the natural deserts. The Sonoran and Chihuahuan deserts are about a
million years old, yet they have become more barren during the last
100 years. So, further desertification has taken place within the desert.
Causes of Desertification: Formation of deserts may take place
due to natural phenomena like climate change or may be due to abusive
use of land. Even the climate change is linked in many ways to human
activities. The major anthropogenic activities responsible for
desertification are as follows:
(a) Deforestation: The process of denuding and degrading a
forested land initiates a desert producing cycle that feeds on itself. Since
there is no vegetation to hold back the surface run-off, water drains off
quickly before it can soak into the soil to nourish the plants or to
replenish the groundwater. This increases soil erosion, loss of fertility
and loss of water.
(b) Overgrazing: The regions most seriously affected by
desertification are the cattle producing areas of the world. This is
because the increasing cattle population heavily graze in grasslands or
forests and as a result denude the land area. When the earth is denuded,
the microclimate near the ground becomes inhospitable to seed
germination. The dry barren land becomes loose and more prone to
soil erosion. The top fertile layer is also lost and thus plant growth is
badly hampered in such soils. The dry barren land reflects more of the
suns heat, changing wind patterns, driving away moisture laden clouds
leading to further desertification.
(c) Mining and quarrying: These activities are also responsible
for loss of vegetal cover and denudation of extensive land areas leading
to desertification. Deserts are found to occur in the arid and semi-arid
areas of all the continents . During the last 50 years about 900 million
hectares of land have undergone desertification over the world. This
problem is especially severe in Sahel region, just south of the Sahara in
Africa. It is further estimated that if desertification continues at the
present rate, then by 2010, it will affect such lands which are presently
occupied by 20% of the human population.
Amongst the most badly affected areas are the sub Saharan Africa,
the Middle East, Western Asia, parts of Central and South America,
Australia and the Western half of the United States.
It is estimated that in the last 50 years, human activities have been
responsible for desertification of land area equal to the size of Brazil.
The UNEP estimates suggest that if we dont make sincere efforts now
then very soon 63% of rangelands, 60% of rain-fed croplands and 30%
of irrigated croplands will suffer from desertification on a worldwide
scale, adding 60,000 Km2 of deserts every year.
n CONSERVATION OF NATURAL RESOURCES: ROLE OF AN

INDIVIDUAL
Different natural resources like forests, water, soil, food, mineral and
energy resources play a vital role in the development of a nation.
However, overuse of these resources in our modern society is resulting
in fast depletion of these resources and several related problems. If we
want our mankind to flourish there is a strong need to conserve these
natural resources.
While conservation efforts are underway at National as well as
International level, the individual efforts for conservation of natural
resources can go a long way. Environment belongs to each one of us
and all of us have a responsibility to contribute towards its conserva-
tion and protection. Small droplets of water together form a big ocean.
Similarly, with our small individual efforts we can together help in con-
serving our natural resources to a large extent. Let us see how can
individuals help in conservation of different resources.
Conserve Water
l Dont keep water taps running while brushing, shaving, wash-
ing or bathing.
l In washing machines fill the machine only to the level required

for your clothes.
l Install water-saving toilets that use not more than 6 liters per
flush.
l Check for water leaks in pipes and toilets and repair them
promptly. A small pin-hole sized leak will lead to the wastage
of 640 liters of water in a month.
l Reuse the soapy water of washings from clothes for washing
off the courtyards, driveways etc.
l Water the plants in your kitchen-garden and the lawns in the
evening when evaporation losses are minimum. Never water
the plants in mid-day.
l Use drip irrigation and sprinkling irrigation to improve
irrigation efficiency and reduce evaporation.
l Install a small system to capture rain water and collect
normally wasted used water from sinks, cloth-washers, bath-
tubs etc. which can be used for watering the plants.
l Build rain water harvesting system in your house. Even the
President of India is doing this.
Conserve energy
l Turn off lights, fans and other appliances when not in use.
l Obtain as much heat as possible from natural sources. Dry
the clothes in sun instead of drier if it is a sunny day.
l Use solar cooker for cooking your food on sunny days which
will be more nutritious and will cut down on your LPG ex-
penses.
l Build your house with provision for sunspace which will keep
your house warmer and will provide more light.
l Grow deciduous trees and climbers at proper places outside
your home to cut off intense heat of summers and get a cool
breeze and shade. This will cut off your electricity charges on
coolers and air-conditioners. A big tree is estimated to have a
cooling effect equivalent to five air conditioners. The decidu-
ous trees shed their leaves in winter. Therefore they do not
put any hindrance to the sunlight and heat.
l Drive less, make fewer trips and use public transportations
whenever possible. You can share by joining a car-pool if you
regularly have to go to the same place.
l Add more insulation to your house. During winter close the

windows at night. During summer close the windows during
days if using an A.C. Otherwise loss of heat would be more,
consuming more electricity.
l Instead of using the heat convector more often wear adequate
woolens.
l Recycle and reuse glass, metals and paper.
l Try riding bicycle or just walk down small distances instead
of using your car or scooter.
l Lower the cooling load on an air conditioner by increasing
the thermostat setting as 3-5 % electricity is saved for every
one degree rise in temperature setting.
Protect the soil
l While constructing your house, dont uproot the trees as far
as possible. Plant the disturbed areas with a fast growing native
ground cover.
l Grow different types of ornamental plants, herbs and trees in
your garden. Grow grass in the open areas which will bind
the soil and prevent its erosion.
l Make compost from your kitchen waste and use it for your
kitchen-garden or flower-pots.
l Do not irrigate the plants using a strong flow of water, as it
would wash off the soil.
l Better use sprinkling irrigation.
l Use green manure and mulch in the garden and kitchen-garden
which will protect the soil.
l If you own agricultural fields, do not over-irrigate your fields
without proper drainage to prevent water logging and
salinisation.
l Use mixed cropping so that some specific soil nutrients do
not get depleted.
Promote Sustainable Agriculture
l Do not waste food. Take as much as you can eat.
l Reduce the use of pesticides.
l Fertilize your crop primarily with organic fertilizers.
l Use drip irrigation to water the crops.
l Eat local and seasonal vegetables. This saves lot of energy on
transport, storage and preservation.
l Control pests by a combination of cultivation and biological

control methods.
n EQUITABLE USE OF RESOURCES FOR SUSTAINABLE LIFE

STYLE
There is a big divide in the world as North and South, the more
developed countries (MDCs) and less developed countries (LDCs),
the haves and the have nots. The less developed does not mean that
they are backward as such, they are culturally very rich or even much
more developed, but economically they are less developed. The gap
between the two is mainly because of population and resources.
The MDCs have only 22% of worlds population, but they use
88% of its natural resources, 73% of its energy and command 85% of
its income. In turn, they contribute a very big proportion to its pollution.
These countries include USA, Canada, Japan, the CIS, Australia , New
Zealand and Western European Countries. The LDCs, on the other
hand, have very low or moderate industrial growth, have 78% of the
worlds population and use about 12% of natural resources and 27% of
energy. Their income is merely 15% of global income. The gap between
the two is increasing with time due to sharp increase in population in
the LDCs. The rich have grown richer while the poor have stayed poor
or gone even poorer.
As the rich nations are developing more, they are also leading to
more pollution and sustainability of the earths life support system is
under threat. The poor nations, on the other hand, are still struggling
hard with their large population and poverty problems. Their share of
resources is too little leading to unsustainability.
As the rich nations continue to grow, they will reach a limit. If
they have a growth rate of 10 % every year, they will show 1024 times
increase in the next 70 years. Will this much of growth be sustainable?
The answer is No because many of our earths resources are limited
and even the renewable resources will become unsustainable if their
use exceeds their regeneration.
Thus, the solution to this problem is to have more equitable
distribution of resources and wealth. We cannot expect the poor
countries to stop growth in order to check pollution because
development brings employment and the main problem of these
countries is to tackle poverty. A global consensus has to be reached for
more balanced distribution of the basic resources like safe drinking
water, food, fuel etc. so that the poor in the LDCs are at least able to
sustain their life. Unless they are provided with such basic resources,

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regenerated within a given span of time e.g. forests, wildlife,

Fossil fuels like coal, petroleum, minerals etc. Once we exhaust

2.1 FOREST RESOURCES

bon dioxide (CO2) is absorbed by the forests as a raw material

l Wild life habitat: Forests are the homes of millions of wild

n OVER EXPLOITATION OF FORESTS

deforestation rate per unit population in India is the lowest amongst

(ii) Biodiversity is lost and along with that genetic diversity is

l Desertification in hilly regions of the Himalayas

l Disappearing Tea gardens in Chhota Nagpur

This hilly region used to be a good forested area towards the

l Waning Rainfall in Udhagamandalam (Ooty)

Major Activities in Forests

n DAMS AND THEIR EFFECTS ON FORESTS AND PEOPLE

Sardar Sarovar Dam (Uprooted Forests And Tribals):

rehabilitation issue ever encountered as per the World Bank.

2.2 WATER RESOURCES

subsequently return through rainfall or snow. Plants too play a very

n WATER USE AND OVER-EXPLOITATION

Water: A Precious Natural Resource

Unconfined aquifer recharge area

Fig. 2.2.1. The groundwater system. An unconfined aquifer

Effects of Groundwater Usage

Water rich vs. Water poor countries

n CONFLICTS OVER WATER

Sudan too is trying to divert more water. This would badly

Traditional Water Management System

n BIG DAMS- BENEFITS AND PROBLEMS

(A) The upstream problems include the following:

2.3 MINERAL RESOURCES

n USES AND EXPLOITATION

Distribution and uses of some of the major metallic and non-

Table 2.3.2. Major uses of some non-metallic minerals

n ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS OF MINERAL EXTRACTION

(i) Jaduguda Uranium Mine, Jharkhandexposing local people

bending of rail tracks and leaking of gas from cracked pipe-

Restoration of mined areas by re-vegetating them with appropri-

l Mining and quarrying in Udaipur

l Mining in Sariska Tiger Reserve in Aravallis

l Uranium Mining in Nalgonda, A.P.The public hearing

2.4 FOOD RESOURCES

Deficiency Health Effect No. of Cases Deaths per year

Proteins and Stunted growth, 750 15-20

n WORLD FOOD PROBLEMS

n IMPACTS OF OVERGRAZING AND AGRICULTURE

remains on the soil to be decomposed. The humus content of the soil

1. Traditional agriculture and its impacts: It usually involves a

infants to the maximum extent causing even death. In

(c) Biological magnification: Many of the pesticides are non-

Evaporation and transpiration

Fig. 2.4.1. Salinization and water logging.

Remedy: The most common method for getting rid of salts is to

Salinity and water logging in Punjab, Haryana and Rajasthan :

The floods of 1947, 1950, 1952, 1954-56 in Punjab resulted in

2.5. ENERGY RESOURCES

n GROWING ENERGY NEEDS

Fig. 2.5.1. Per capita energy use and GNP

(i) Jaduguda Uranium Mine, Jharkhandexposing local people

l Uranium Mining in Nalgonda, A.P.The public hearing

erosion while deforestation is responsible for 30% of the earths

Thus, soil erosion is one of the worlds most critical problems