WEEK 2

ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE
● It is an interdisciplinary academic field that integrates physical, biological and information sciences including ecology,
biology, physics, chemistry, plant science, zoology, mineralogy, oceanography, limnology, soil science, geology.

● Is a scientific study of nature and how it is affected by humanity.

MAJOR COMPONENTS OF ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCE:

ECOLOGY GEOSCIENCE ATMOSPHERIC SCIENCE ENVIRONMENTAL CHEMISTRY

ECOLOGY
● Came from the word “oikos” which means "in the house" and “logos” means to study.
● Is the study of organisms and the environment interacting with one another or is about the correlation between
organisms and its surroundings.

ECOLOGISTS
the practitioners, who make up a part of environmental scientists as well as researching the relation between the state oF the
environment and population specific within the environment.

Example of e\Ecology Study:

FOOD WEB >

GEOSCIENCE
● Came from the word “geos” which means “earth”.
● Is concerned with the study of geology, soil science, volcanoes, and earth’s layers as they relate to the environment.

● Geologists may study the erosion of the earth’s surface in a particular mountainous area.
● Geomorphologists would study the movement of solid particles(sediments).
● Biologists would study the plants and animals of the immediate environment.
● Physicists would study the momentum and gravitational influence that may cause changes in the water and eventually loosen up mineral
particles causing the erosions.
● Soil Scientists would make the final forecast on the flow of water when it infiltrates the soil, loosening up the materials to full capacity
causing the erosion.
ATMOSPHERIC SCIENCE
● The study of Earth’s Atmosphere.
● It scrutinizes the relation of the Earth’s atmosphere to the atmospheres of the other systems.
● This includes a wide variety of scientific studies relating to outer space, astrology, and the earth’s atmosphere:
meteorology, pollution, gas emission and suspended particulate matter.

Scientists such as the:

● Physicists would study atmospheric dissemination of a part of the atmosphere.
● Chemists would study the chemical existence and their relationships with the environment.
● Meteorologists study the dynamics or various phenomena of the atmosphere.
● Biologists would study how the plants are affected and their relationship with the environment.

Example of Atmosphere Science Study

CHEMIST & METEOROLOGIST FOR WEATHER FORECAST
BIOLOGIST & PHYSICIST

ENVIRONMENTAL CHEMISTRY
● Is the study of changes that chemicals make in the environment, such as contamination of the environment, degradation of chemicals
beneficial to the organisms, and the transport of chemicals upon the plants and animals of the immediate environment.

Biologists
● Would then study the effects of chemically induced surroundings to see its relationship with the plants and animals of the environment
would eventually alter their existence.

Example of Environmental Chemistry Study

NITROGEN CYCLE & CHERNOBYL 1986

WEEK 3
7 ENVIRONMENTAL PRINCIPLES

1. NATURE KNOWS BEST.

● This principle is the most essential and encompasses all the other principles.
● This principle only surfaced when many of the pernicious effects of technology were recognized and thereon is the birth of
ecological backlash.

● One natural process that needs serious attention is nutrient cycling.

● In nature, nutrients pass from the environment to the organisms and back to the environment at the end of organismsʼ lifeline.
2. ALL FORMS OF LIFE ARE IMPORTANT.
● Each organism plays a fundamental role in nature.
● Since such occupational or functional positions, otherwise known as niche, cannot be simultaneously occupied by more than
one species, it is apparent that all living things must be considered as invaluable in the maintenance of homeostasis in the
ecosystem.

Example:
Pollination
● It is easy to appreciate the beautiful butterflies, especially knowing their important role in pollination.
The giant beast (the elephant, the whale, the alligator)
● are objects of awe and the products they yield – respectively ivory, oil, leather are highly prized.
But when it comes to unlovely, wriggly and troublesome creatures, this principle is unusually overlooked.

3. EVERYTHING IS CONNECTED TO EVERYTHING ELSE.

● This principle may be the talk of the century from a local, regional, or global perspective.
● This principle is best exemplified by the concept of the ecosystem.
● In an ecosystem, all the biotic and abiotic components interact with each other to make sure that the system is extant.

Example:
Chernobyl Disaster
● Whatever happens to one community may affect other communities.
● When radiation from the Chernobyl accident leaked, it affected a lot of countries through the transfer of radioactive
substances by natural agents such as wind and water, as well as human activities like the export of contaminated food. Up to
this time, the effect is still affecting the next generation organismsʼ growth and development.

4. EVERYTHING CHANGES.
It is often said that the only permanent thing in this world is change.
This change may be linear, cyclical, or random.
Linear Change
-the evolution of species has brought about higher and conglomerated types of organisms.
Cyclical Change
-may be depicted by intervals and the cadences in floral and faunal life stages that go with the seasons.
Random Change
- is the killer eruption of Mt. Pinatubo, which brought about great temblor in many parts of Luzon and changes in the topography of
the nearby surroundings.
Natural Change
- man's technology has affected these natural changes often to a growing, problematic extent.

5. EVERYTHING MUST GO SOMEWHERE.

● Every particular type of waste to the earth's repository should be of concern to everyone.
● When a piece of waste is thrown away, it disappears temporarily from sight but it does not stop to exist. It ends up
somewhere.

● Since waste is not lost permanently and even goes back to one's own backyard in some other forms, it is vital that one
becomes aware of the different types of wastes whether they are hazardous or otherwise.
● Classification of wastes facilitates their proper disposal and minimizes, if not prevents, the entry of toxic wastes in vital
ecosystems and ensures reconversion into useful forms.

6. OURS IS A FINITE EARTH.

● Renewable resources are those that can easily be replaced or replenished by natural cycles.

●
● Non-renewable resources are those that cannot be replenished or replaced through natural cycles.

Remember:
● It is better to conserve and preserve what is left in our environment now than pay the price of agony later.
● Humans’ consumerist attitude shall be changed and his desire to develop processes and technology would bring about
recycling a great number of resources.

7. NATURE IS BEAUTIFUL AND WE ARE STEWARDS OF GOD’S CREATION.

● Of all creatures, humans are the only ones made in God's image and have been given the right to have dominion over all His
creations.
● Being the most rational, intelligent and gifted creation, humans are capable of manipulating creation to their own advantage.
● Humans cannot exist without nature but nature can exist without humans.
 ● This creation exists and destined not to be ravaged or abused but to be taken care of.
● They are co-natural with the environment they live in.
● If the environment they live in is destroyed and made unlivable with humans, with it, Homo sapiens will go and his evolution
stops.
● This principle is engraved in all religious and tribal beliefs. Teachings of Christianity, Buddhism and Islam ask everyone to
respect everything that has life and the order of nature.

WEEK 4
Interactions and Biogeochemical Cycles

BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLE
● Is a pathway by which a chemical substance moves through
● Biotic (biosphere) & Abiotic ( lithosphere, atmosphere, and hydrosphere) compartments of Earth.
● defines it as the movement of elements through organisms and the environment.

BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLE
BIO involves biological organisms
GEO involves geological processes
CHEMICAL indicates chemical processes
CYCLE is a series of events that are regularly repeated in the same order.

BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLE
● The producers or autotrophs of an ecosystem take up several basic inorganic nutrients from their abiotic counterpart in the
environment.
● These materials get transformed into the biomass of the autotrophs.
● After which, they are utilized by the heterotroph population and are eventually returned to the environment with the help of the
decomposers.
● This periodic transfer of nutrient material between the biotic organisms and their abiotic environment is called biogeochemical
cycle. The nutrients circulate through life and through earth time and again.
● The biogeochemical cycles safeguard the limited source of raw or basic materials in the environment.

HYDROLOGIC CYCLE or WATER CYCLE

● Liquid water molecules transform into water vapor molecules which then EVAPORATE into the atmosphere.
● Likewise, the excess water in the plants is released via evapotranspiration. This excess water is also turned into gaseous
molecules and moved towards the atmosphere.
● Upon reaching the atmosphere, these water vapor molecules CONDENSED and formed into clouds.
● When the clouds are heavy enough, a PRECIPITATION process takes place. Water is now captured by the catch basins. The
water could end up as surface water as it flows to rivers and eventually to the seas and oceans. The water could also end in the
aquifer as they INFILTRATE the soil and transform it into underground water. These steps are repeated because this is a cycle.
ECCLESIASTES 1:7
“All the rivers run into the sea, yet the sea is not full; into the place from where the rivers come, and then they return again. “

CARBON CYCLE
The element carbon is a part of seawater, the atmosphere, rocks such as limestone and coal, soils, as well as all living things.
On our a dynamic planet, carbon is able to move from one of these realms to another as a part of the carbon cycle.

HOW CARBON CYCLE WORKS?

● Carbon moves from the atmosphere to plants.
● In the atmosphere, carbon is attached to oxygen in a gas called carbon dioxide (CO2).
● Through the process of photosynthesis, carbon dioxide is pulled from the air to produce food made from carbon for plant
growth. Carbon moves from plants to animals. Through food chains, the carbon that is in plants moves to the animals that eat
them. Animals that eat other animals get carbon from their food too.
● Carbon moves from plants and animals to soils. When plants and animals die, their bodies, wood and leaves decays bringing
the carbon into the ground. Some are buried and will become fossil fuels in millions and millions of years.
● Carbon moves from living things to the atmosphere. Each time you exhale, you are releasing carbon dioxide gas (CO2) into the
atmosphere. Animals and plants need to get rid of carbon dioxide gas through a process called respiration.
● Carbon moves from fossil fuels to the atmosphere when fuels are burned. When humans burn fossil fuels to power factories,
power plants, cars and trucks, most of the carbon quickly enters the atmosphere as carbon dioxide gas. Each year, five and a
half billion tons of carbon is released by burning fossil fuels. Of this massive amount, 3.3 billion tons stay in the atmosphere.
● Most of the remainder becomes dissolved in seawater. The carbon is dissolved into the water.
● Carbon moves from the atmosphere to the oceans.
● The oceans, and other bodies of water, absorb some carbon from the atmosphere.

NITROGEN CYCLE
● is the recirculation and reuse of nitrogen in various forms to meet the demand for various environmental and biological
activities.
● Nitrogen in the atmosphere is present in a gaseous and diatomic form ( N2).
● Therefore, plants cannot use the nitrogen in this form. Therefore, they need nitrogen fixing bacteria, lightning, root nodules,
forest fire etc. to convert the nitrogen into nitrate compounds like Nitric Oxide(NO), Nitrite(NO2), Nitrate(NO3)

1.Nitrogen fixation
Atmospheric nitrogen (N2) which is primarily available in an inert form, is converted into the usable form -ammonia (NH3).
During the process of Nitrogen fixation, the inert form of nitrogen gas is deposited into soils from the atmosphere and surface
waters, mainly through precipitation. Later, the nitrogen undergoes a set of changes, in which two nitrogen atoms get separated and
combine with hydrogen to form ammonia (NH4+).

The entire process of Nitrogen fixation is completed by symbiotic bacteria which are known as Diazotrophs.
Azotobacter and Rhizobium also have a major role in this process.
These bacteria consist of a nitrogenase enzyme which has the capability to combine gaseous nitrogen with hydrogen to form
ammonia.
Nitrogen Fixation
The conversion of atmospheric nitrogen to a usable form of ammonia.
Without this process, most plants and animals do not have the nitrogen needed to live.

TYPES OF NITROGEN FIXATION

1. Atmospheric fixation: A natural phenomenon where the energy of lightning breaks the nitrogen into nitrogen oxides and is then
used by plants.
2. Industrial nitrogen fixation: Is a man-made alternative that aids in nitrogen fixation by the use of ammonia.
● Ammonia is produced by the direct combination of nitrogen and hydrogen and later, it is converted into various fertilizers such
as urea.
3. Biological nitrogen fixation: We already know that nitrogen is not usable directly from the air for plants and animals. Bacteria like
Rhizobium and blue-green algae transform the unusable form of nitrogen into other compounds that are more readily
usable. These nitrogen compounds get fixed in the soil by these microbes.

2. Nitrification
In this process, the ammonia is converted into nitrate by the presence of bacteria in the soil. Nitrites are formed by the oxidation of
Ammonia with the help of Nitrosomonas bacteria species. Later, the produced nitrites are converted into nitrates by Nitrobacter.
This conversion is very important as ammonia gas is toxic for plants.

3. Assimilation
Primary producers – plants take in the nitrogen compounds from the soil with the help of their roots, which are available in the form
of ammonia, nitrite ions, nitrate ions or ammonium ions and are used in the formation of the plant and animal proteins. This way, it
enters the food web when the primary consumers eat the plants.

4. Ammonification
When plants or animals die, the nitrogen present in the organic matter is released back into the soil. The decomposers, namely
bacteria or fungi present in the soil, convert the organic matter back into ammonium. This process of decomposition produces
ammonia, which is further used for other biological processes.

Denitrification
Denitrification is the process in which the nitrogen compounds makes their way back into the atmosphere by converting nitrate
(NO3-) into gaseous nitrogen (N). This process of the nitrogen cycle is the final stage and occurs in the absence of oxygen.
Denitrification is carried out by the denitrifying bacterial species- Clostridium and Pseudomonas, which will process nitrate to gain
oxygen and gives out free nitrogen gas as a byproduct.
 WEEK 5
INTERACTIONS & BIOGEOCHEMICAL CYCLES
(Oxygen Cycle, Energy and Nutrients Cycle)

Oxygen Cycle
Is a circulation of oxygen in various forms through nature.
The atmosphere contains about 21% oxygen. Nitrogen is on top of the list of gasses in the atmosphere.

In the oxygen cycle, the oxygen is liberated as shown by the equation.

6 CO2 + 6 H2O + light energy

Photosynthesis is the process by which plants use sunlight, water, and carbon dioxide to create oxygen and energy in the form of
sugar. ➡️ 6 CO2 + 12H2O+LightEnergy C6H12O6+6O2+6H2O

This free oxygen may be utilized again in respiration or it may be returned to the environment as molecular atmospheric oxygen,
completing the cycle. Therefore, oxygen enters organisms only through respiration and leaves through photosynthesis. It may
incorporate in water and interlink with the water cycle indirectly with the carbon cycle.

The oxygen in the atmosphere is the source of ozone (O3). The feared ozone layer protects organisms by preventing most of the
ultraviolet and X-ray from reaching the earth's surface. Many are still easy believers of a catastrophic ozone layer. The most recent
A factor affecting the oxygen cycle of the biosphere and the oxygen budget of the earth is the man himself and selfish attitudes. He
I don't care. Man consumes the oxygen and decreases the oxygen level and increases the carbon dioxide level as the burn fossil
fuels.

ENERGY and NUTRIENT CYCLING

All ecosystems consist of two components:
● the biotic or living components-bacteria, fungi, protists, plants and animals
● The abiotic or non-living physical or chemical aspects of the environment, such as the climate, light, temperature, availability
of water, and minerals in the soil.
● The living components interact with the nonliving components.

The energy flow describes the interactions between energy sources within the Earth's environment.
A nutrient cycle is a repeated pathway of a particular nutrient or element from the environment through one or more organisms and
back to the environment.

Nutrients are atoms and molecules that organisms obtain from their environment as food in their quest for survival and therefore
growth in population. The same nutrients may have been sustaining life on Earth from the life was detected to be present for about
3.5 billion years.
Nutrients are brought to the Earth but they never leave the planet.

Much of the energy reaching Earth from the sun is reflected back into space by the atmosphere, clouds, and the Earth's surface.
Some is absorbed by the Earth to warm the planet.
Less than 0.03% of the energy reaching Earth from the sun equivalent to almost a kilowatt is captured by photosynthetic organisms,
and supports life on Earth.

Energy enters ecosystems through photosynthesis.

Plants, algae, and photosynthetic bacteria acquire nutrients such as carbon, nitrogen, oxygen, and phosphorus from the abiotic
portions of ecosystems.

Photosynthesizers bring energy and nutrients into ecosystems.

Photosynthetic organisms capture sunlight's energy.
Nutrients and energy contained in biological molecules move from photosynthetic organisms to non-photosynthetic organisms

The energy flow describes the interactions between energy sources within the Earth's environment.
The energy flow is based on the flow of the energy through the ecosystem.

Energy, on the other hand, takes a one-way trip through ecosystems.

Solar energy is captured by photosynthetic organisms like bacteria, algae, and plants, and then transfers from organism to
organism. Then, all of life's energy is converted to heat that is given off to the environment but cannot be used to drive the chemical
reactions of living organisms. Life requires a non-stop input of energy.

Energy is passed from one trophic level to the next.

Each category of organisms is called a trophic level.
Producers (or autotrophs) are photosynthesizing organisms.
Consumers (or heterotrophs) cannot photosynthesize.
Ninety-nine percent of protozoans are non-photosynthesizers.

The heterotroph consumers acquire energy, and nutrients from molecules in the bodies of other organisms which they have
consumed. Energy flow through ecosystems begins with photosynthetic organisms and passes through several levels of
non-photosynthetic organisms that feed on the photosynthesizers or each other.
Autotrophs which make their own food (sugar-glucose) using inorganic nutrients and solar energy from the environment.

Energy is transferred from one trophic level to the next higher level.

There are several levels of consumers.

Primary consumers
Herbivores feed directly and exclusively on producers. These herbivores (plant eaters) include animals such as grasshoppers,
mice, and zebras, form the second trophic level.
Carnivores act as secondary consumers when they prey on herbivores.
Carnivores (meat eaters) such as spiders, hawks, and salmon, make up the higher-level consumers. Max- be higher trophic levels
(like in the oceans).
(Omnivores) Some carnivores eat other carnivores and are called tertiary consumers such as dogs, foxes, raccoons, certain insects, and
even humans
There isn’t a perfect transfer of energy from one organism to another. It follows something called the ten percent rule.
ex: 100,000 units of producers

So what happens to all of that extra energy that’s not accounted for here?
METABOLIC PROCESS

WEEK 6
HUMAN POPULATION AND THE ENVIRONMENT

Human-Environmental Interactions
It can be defined as interactions between the humanity or human social system and the rest of the ecosystem.

Important Characteristics of Human Social Systems

POPULATION SOCIAL VALUES TECHNOLOGY WEALTH EDUCATION KNOWLEDGE

SIZE ORGANIZATION

It summarizes the interactions between ‘human activities’ and ‘the environment’.

The green arrow indicates the waste generated as a product of this interaction.
The red arrows indicate the negative effect on both the environment and humans if the waste is not properly managed.

The links between human activity and the environment are complex and varied, but can be grouped into
two main types of activity:
● use of natural resources such as land, food, water, soils, minerals, plants and animals
● production of wastes from a range of activities including agriculture, industry and mining, as well as wastes from our own
bodies.
Coevolution and Coadaptation
● The terms coevolution and coadaptation describe the never-ending process of mutual adjustment and change between human
social systems and the environment. People's actions have consequences on the environment. But also the environment
influences human activities. Human social systems have to adapt to their specific environment.

● People's actions have effects on the environment.

● These are some of the natural phenomena that can either be directly or not primarily anthropogenic and again affect human
actions as people have to react to new situations.

EXAMPLES:
Storm > Tsunami > Earthquake > Volcanic Eruption

● Human Interaction on the environment is a product of human overconfidence on itself.

● Human interaction in the environment causes the disastrous failure and eventually extinction of humanity.

Demographers estimated that in every second five babies are born. Two of them die at birth while three of them keep on growing and
multiply. That's 180 babies in one minute.
Land space on earth is getting smaller and smaller for humans to settle.

Aristotle believes that Earth is alive, breathing and growing Man is contemplating on sending human expedition mars, a one-way trip
to depopulate Earth and make Mars another "Earth".

OVERPOPULATION
● is an undesirable condition where the number of the existing human population exceeds the carrying capacity of the earth.
● means the pattern of where people live in transient and permanent settings.

POPULATION DISTRIBUTION
*Indigenous people in the Forest
*Corporate World
* People in Polar region (extremely cold region)
* Extremely hot areas like Desert
* Too Populated: Urban areas

THREE PATTERNS OF DISTRIBUTION IN POPULATION OF ORGANISMS

CLUMPED
● Organisms are clustered together in groups. This may reflect a patchy distribution of resources in the environment.
● This is the most common pattern of population dispersion.
RANDOM
● Organisms have an unpredictable distribution. This is typical of species in which individuals do not interact strongly.
UNIFORM
 ● Organisms have an unpredictable distribution. This is typical of species in which individuals do not interact strongly.
● Direct interactions between individual/ territoriality

Random
-Is the number of people living in a particular community usually 1 square mile or 1 sq km and can be referred to as the totaL
population per land area.

POPULATION DENSITY
PD= Number of people
Land Area

The major factors that determines population distribution

CLIMATE POLITICAL BOUNDARIES

LANDFORMS CONTROLS ON MIGRATION AND TRADE

TOPOGRAPHY WORKPLACE

SOIL GOVERNMENT POLICIES

ENERGY TYPES OF BUSINESS ACTIVITIES

MINERAL RESOURCES TECHNOLOGY

(AGRICULTURAL AND TRANSPORTATION
FACILITIES)

ACCESSIBILITY SOCIAL ORGANIZATION

(DISTANCE & SEA COST)

NATURAL HARBORS NATURAL INCREASE IN MIGRATION

NAVIGABLE RIVERS CULTURAL FACTORS

 WEEK 7
EARTH CAPACITY

POPULATION
is the number of living people that live together in the same place.

CARRYING CAPACITY
● is the maximum number of a species an environment can support indefinitely.
● Every species has a carrying capacity, even humans.
● The carrying capacity of an environment is the maximum population size of a biological species that can be sustained by that
specific environment, given the food, habitat, water, and other resources available.

● Edward Osborne Wilson is usually cited as E. O. Wilson,

● is an American biologist, naturalist, and writer.
● Wilson is an influential biologist who on numerous occasions has been given the nicknames
● "The New Darwin", "Darwin's natural heir" or "The Darwin of the 21st century".
The Fertility Rate
● the average number of children a woman gives birth to - is falling.

Replacement Level
● is the amount of fertility needed to keep the population the same from generation to generation.
● It refers to the total fertility rate that will result in a stable population without it increasing or decreasing.