biodiversity types of biodiversity desertification causes of desertification strategies in desertification control sustainable development

1. Presented by :-
Gadhavi Shital N.
Msc.Sem -2 (Botany)
CBO:- 405
Department of life
sciences
ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS :- BIODIVERSITY ,
DESERTIFICATION AND SUSTAINABLE
DEVELOPMENT

2. CONTENT
 Biodiversity
 Types of biodiversity
 Desertification
 Causes of desertification
 Strategies in desertification control
 Sustainable development

3. Biodiversity
• Biodiversity is the variety of life forms on earth and
its myriad of processes.
•In the entire biosphere, numerous kind of
microoganisms, plants and animals live. We can
observed in the plant world , animalworld, and
microbes .
•Man has been identifying them for the last two or
three centuries .we determine the identify and
classify them on the basis of their similarities and
dissimilarities .variation can occur amongst the
organisms of the same species
•There can be genetic variations , species variation as
well as ecosystem variations .

4. • We also know that all organisms cannot be found
everywhere . Where does an organisms live depends
on the adaptiability of the organism to its
environment .
• Those organisms which have a wide range of
tolerance for various factors can live over a wider
region .
• We can understand the distribution of biological
worlds through the study of biogeography .
• Scientists establish identity of an organism and then
classify it .Nearly 17 to 18 lac species are identified at
present .

5.  Types of biodiversity
1) Genetic biodiversity
2) Species biodiversity
3) Ecosystem biodiversity

6.  GENETIC BIODIVERSITY
• Organisms of each species posses genetic material.
Genes of all organisms are made up of DNA .
• The number of genes and their kinds are fixed in
individual of each species .
• In bacteria like E.Coli around 4000 genes are present . In
drosophilla, 13,000 and in human 40,000 genes are
present .
• Genetic diversity is the basis of formation of new
species. The greater is the genetic diversity of a species
, the higher is its efficiency to adapt . The greater the
biodiversity , the wider is the geographical distribution .
• It is essential to conserve genetic diversity .

7. SPECIES BIODIVERSITY
• The number of species of plants and animals that
are present in a region constitutes its species
diversity .
• This diversity of species is seen both in various
natural and agricultural systems .
• Natural tropical forests, have a much greater species
diversity than most of the other regions.
• Modern intensive agricultural systems have a
relatively lower diversity than traditional
agropastoral farming system were multiple crops
were used .

8. • In intensive agriculture , only one type of crop grows
whereas In traditional farming , the farmer used to plant
many different types of crops.
• Through intensive agriculture provides rapid economic
returns, a disease can destroy the whole crop .in a
multicrop system , if one crop is destroyed , the other
successful crops help the farmer to make ends meet.
• A natural forest has a higher species diversity as
compared to a timber plantation .
• In the natural system , there are a large number of non-
wood products that people depends on such as fruit,
fuelwood , fodder , fibre, gum, resin and medicines.
timber plantation do not provide such goods for local
consumption.

9. ECOSYSTEM BIODIVERSITY
• Forest systems differ widely, depending on climatic, soil
and water regimes. The forest system has a variety of
trees ,shrubs, climbers and undergrowth.
• There are several small animals and plants on the forest
floor. The ground is covered with leaf litter in which there
are masses of fungi and bacteria.
• These masses complete the nutrient cycle in the forest by
breaking down nutrients into simple compounds that
plants can absorb through their root systems.
• Each forest type has its own community of insects,
reptiles, amphibia, birds and animals .
• On certain fungi that live on their roots for mutual
benefits.
• These complex interactions are found in large numbers in
any forest system and are responsible for its integrity.

10.  DESERT SYSTEM
• Arid ecosystems have their own important characteristics of
value to mankind, as the species are adapted to long dry
periods.
• These xerophytic plants ( grasses, bushes and trees) may well
become of great value to develop new agricultural crops, when
global warming occurs due to the anticipated climatic changes.
• As a result of an increase in the concentration of carbon dioxide
and other gases that are accumulating in the atmosphere from
industry and burning of fossil fuel.
• These species can tolerate long and extremely arid periods and
great temperature variations.
• These plants, insects and reptiles disappear when deserts are
turned into irrigated agricultural land .

11. DESERTIFICATIONS
 WHAT IS DESERTIFICATION ??
• The word Desertification first was used by Aubreville
in 1949
•desertification is Land degradation in arid, semi-arid
and sub-humid areas resulting from various factors,
including climatatic variations and human activities.
•a phenomenon that is severely exacerbated by
drought.

12. • Desertification results in a decline in plant cover or in
one type of vegetation being replaced with other, less
productive, species.
• Desertification results in a loss of habitat and is one of
the major causes of a decline in biodiversity.
•It affects 3.6 billion ha (70%) of world`s drylands and one
quarter of the total area of the world . Similarly in India,
desertification is affecting and depleting the biological
productivity of various type of ecosystems
•According to report of ICAR 187.7 Mha (57.1%) of the
geographical area the country has been affected by
various type and degree of land degradation .

13. CAUSES OF DESERTIFICATION
• The western Rajasthan in characterised by low and
erratic rainfall, temperature, high wind velocity, low
humidity except rainy season and frequent drought and
sand storms, vast sandy surfaces with poor stand of
vegetation.
• In the recent decades, the increasing anthropogenic,
technogenic and zoogenic activities like indiscriminate
cutting of trees, overgrazing of pastures and cultivation
of marginal lands have accelerated the desertification
processes.
• Both natural and accelerated processes are the major
causes of the desertification and depletion of the
biological productivity of different type of ecosystems.

14. STRATEGIES IN DESERTIFICATION CONTROL
1) Overgrazing
2) Deforestation
3) Soil erosion
4) Improper use of water
5) Textile affluents
6) Minning

15.  OVERGRAZING
• The following factors are likely to encourage freehold
farmers to over utilise their land and cause
desertification.
• Uncertainty about land reform leading to short-term
profit maximisation; low profitability leading to
overstocking; and drought relief subsidies which
encourage farmers not to destock when the veld
condition declines (Dewdney 1996)

16. Oovergrazing and indiscriminate cutting of
trees leading to desertification and depletion
of biomass of grazing lands.

17. DEFORESTATION
• most deforestation results from land clearing for
agriculture.
• Deforestation, particularly if it occurs along rivers,
impacts heavily on the healthy functioning of
ecosystems and is a major cause of soil erosion,
declining water quality and flood control.

18. DEFORESTATION

19. SOIL EROSION
• It includes both wind erosion and water
erosion .
• To prevent desiccation of growing crops ,
shelterbelts as wind breaks have been
developed while the government is adopting
the sand dune fixation techniques as a
governmental programme , the shelterbelts
virtually have been the road side plantation of
trees .

20. SSOIL EROSION

21.  IMPROPER USE OF WATER
• Overuse of water, poor quality of the ground
water and fast receding ground water are the
main problems.
• In canal irrigated areas, overuse of water is
common feature. With the saline subsoil or
hard pans in subsoils, salinization and/or
waterlogging takes place.

22. TEXTILE EFFLUENTS
• The problem created by the textile effluents is highly
localised, but very devastating .
• The effluents are loaded with salts, days and sodium.
• They are let out into the adjacent ephemeral streams
which in turn ruin the well waters adjacent to the
streams.
• There is total loss to the owners of these wells.
• The salt load can be tolerated but not the sodium.
• This is also true with the dyes. CAZRI has shown
means to mellow these problems.
• Neutralising the sodicity with acid treatment and
passing water through fly ash are the suggestions.
this water can be used after nutrilisation .

23. MINING
• Similar to industrial effluents, mine spoils cause
serious environmental problems.
• The overburdens slide and cover up precious
productive lands, if not vegetated properly.

24. SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT
• The world commission on environment and
development in its report to the united nations in
1987 defined the “ sustainable development” as
“ meeting the needs of the present without
compromising the ability of future generation to
meet their own needs”
• Two important programs arising from this new
strategy are:
1)pollution prevention
2) design for environment

25. 1) POLLUTION PREVENTATION
• it is a proactive multimedia management approach
to pollution to achieve “front – end ’’reduction of
pollutants in the waste stream by strictly controlling
the industrial processes with respect to process
upsets , undesirable emission and by improving the
product quality, reducing loss of raw materials to the
waste effluents and recycling the by products.
• Pollution prevention also eliminates the transfer of
pollutants from one media to another because
pollutants are not generated in the first place .

26. 2) DESIGN FOR ENVIRONMENT
• Apart from strict process control during the
manufacture of products, it is also essential to
review the overall synthetic sequence in the
production of chemicals substances and to
consider the substitution or elimination of
hazardous chemicals wherever possible .

27. REFERENCES
• A Textbook of environmental chemistry and pollution
control
- S.S DARA
- S. CHAND
• Desertification control in the arid ecosystem of India
for sustainable development
- SURENDRA SINGH
- AMAL KAR
• Essentials of ecology and environmental science
- S.V.S .RANA

28. Thank you …..