CLASS X-BIOLOGY

CHAPTER 13 – OUR ENVIRONMENT

An environment is everything around us including living and non-living factors. The living
organisms in the environment interact with non-living things in their surroundings and
form a biological system called an ecosystem. An ecosystem can be natural or man-
made.

Components of ecosystem:

Ecosystems include living things (biotic factors) like plants, animals, and microorganisms,
as well as non-living things (abiotic factors) like soil, water, air, and climate.
- Living organisms are categorized into three groups based on their type of
nutrition; producers, consumers and decomposers.
- Producers are autotrophic organisms, produce food using solar energy.
Consumers are heterotrophic organisms which depend on producers. They are
further classified into herbivores (plant eating animals), carnivores (flesh eating
animals), omnivores (eating both plants and animals) and scavengers (dead meat
eating animals). Decomposers are organisms that break down dead and decaying
organisms, and play a vital role in the ecosystem. Fungi, worms, some insects,
and bacteria are all examples of decomposers.
- Each component of the biotic factors is very important for the sustainability of the
ecosystem.

Role of decomposers in the environment:

- Decomposers break down dead organisms into simpler materials, making

nutrients available to primary producers like plants.
- Decomposers help make room for new life in the biosphere by breaking down
dead organisms.
- Decomposers help fix nitrogen in the soil, which helps plants provide nutrients for
other organisms.
- Decomposers help fix nitrogen in the soil, which helps plants provide nutrients for
other organisms.

Types of ecosystem:

- The two main types of ecosystems are terrestrial and aquatic. Examples of
terrestrial ecosystems include forests, grasslands, and deserts, and examples of
aquatic ecosystems include ponds, lakes, rivers, wetlands, and estuaries.
Food chain in ecosystem:
A food chain is a linear network that shows the flow of energy and nutrients through an
ecosystem. It contains series of organisms where one is eaten by the next in the series.
- Trophic levels:
Each organism in an ecosystem occupies a specific trophic level, or position, in the
food chain. Producers are at the bottom, primary consumers (mostly herbivores)
are next, and secondary and tertiary consumers (omnivores and carnivores)
follow. Apex predators are at the top, and have no predators other than humans.

An example of a Food chain:

The flow of energy in a food chain is unidirectional because energy is lost as heat at
each trophic level as it moves from producers to consumers, meaning the energy cannot
be recycled back to the previous level and must continuously move forward through the
chain; essentially, once energy is used by an organism, it cannot be returned to the
source to be reused by the next level down.

Most food chains are short and have only three to four levels because of:

- Energy loss: On average, only 10% of the energy available at one trophic level is
transferred to the next.
- Energy availability: As you move up the food chain, the amount of available
energy decreases.
- Usable energy: After four trophic levels, there is very little usable energy
remaining.

10 % law of energy flow:

The 10% law of energy flow, also known as the 10% rule, states that only 10% of
energy is passed on from one trophic level to the next in a food chain. The remaining
energy is used for metabolic activities and lost as heat.

SO, when energy flows in the trophic level, the producers capture 1% of energy from
the environment and convert it into food energy. When these green plants are eaten by
primary consumers, huge energy is lost and only less energy is obtained by them. Just
10% of the food eaten by the primary consumers can be used by secondary consumers.
Similarly, 10% of the food eaten by secondary consumers can be used by tertiary
consumers. Since so less energy is available for the next level of consumers, the food
chains consist of only 3 or 4 steps. So, the greatest number of organisms is at the lowest
level and the number of organisms decreases after each level.

A food web is a graphical representation of the complex feeding relationships between

organisms in an ecosystem. It shows how food chains overlap and connect with each
other, and how energy flows through the system.

Importance of food web:

- Food webs help us understand how nature sustains itself by showing the complex
connections between all living beings in an ecosystem.
- Food webs help maintain ecological balance by showing how energy and nutrients
flow from one organism to another.
- Food webs help keep ecosystems stable by including all the interconnected food
chains.
- Food webs provide alternate paths for energy and nutrient flow, which can help
organisms survive if one food source is scarce.
- Food webs play an important role in the cycling of nutrients in the living world.

Biological magnification:

Biological magnification is the process by which toxic substances accumulate in

organisms at higher levels in a food chain. This can happen when:

Substances in food chain cannot be broken down by environmental processes and water-
insoluble.

Biological magnification can occur in all ecosystems and food chains. For example, in
aquatic ecosystems, toxins can accumulate in zooplankton, which are then consumed by
smaller fish, which are then consumed by larger fish, and eventually by humans and
birds.

Biological magnification can have serious effects on humans and marine organisms,
including Cancer, Kidney problems, Liver failure, Birth defects, Respiratory disorders,
Heart diseases, and Disruption of the food chain.

Effects of human activities in the environment

We are an integral part of the environment. Changes in the environment affect us and
our activities change the environment around us.

Ozone and its depletion:

Ozone is a gas made up of three oxygen molecules (O3) that can be found in the Earth's
atmosphere. The ozone layer is formed naturally in the stratosphere when ultraviolet
radiation from the sun interacts with oxygen molecules. Ultraviolet radiation from the
sun breaks apart oxygen molecules (O2) into two oxygen atoms. Each oxygen atom then
binds with another oxygen molecule to form ozone (O3). The ozone layer is located 6–30
miles above the Earth's surface and absorbs most of the sun's harmful ultraviolet
radiation.

Ozone depletion is the thinning of the ozone layer in the upper atmosphere, which is
caused by human activities that release chlorine and bromine-containing chemicals such
as CFCs and Methyl bromide. Human activities, such as industry, release chlorine and
bromine-containing chemicals into the atmosphere. These chemicals break down in the
presence of the sun's UV rays, releasing chlorine and bromine atoms that destroy ozone
molecules. Ozone depletion increases the amount of UV radiation that reaches the
Earth's surface, which can lead to skin cancer, eye cataracts, and damage to the immune
system and genetics.

Managing garbage:

Waste can be classified as biodegradable and non-biodegradable. Biodegradable wastes

are decomposed easily by soil microorganisms whereas non-biodegradable materials
cannot be decomposed easily.

Methods of waste disposal include:

Recycling: The processing of certain wastes to form new products is called recycling, e.g.
paper, glass, polythene, etc., are recyclable, they can be used to make cards, decorative
items, etc.

Composting: It is the process of collecting the biodegradable wastes like leftovers of

food items, peels, etc., and burying them in a pit. The product is used as manure.

Incineration: It is burning of a substance at high temperature to form ash.

Landfills: Dumping of waste in low lying areas is called landfill.

Sewage treatment: In sewage treatment plants, the sewage is processed and

decomposed.