What changes can you make in your habits to become more environment friendly?
Following changes can be made in habits to become more environment friendly
o Use recycled paper.
o Use solar panels to generate electricity.
o Switch of lights during daytime and work in sunlight.
o Use paper and jute bags, instead pf plastic/ polythene bags, as they are degradable easily.
o Close the water taps while brushing teeth and while bathing when the bucket gets full.
o Use bicycle to travel shorter distances.
o Use public transports for longer distances to avoid burning of petroleum.
o Switch of electrical appliances when not needed.
o Avoid excessive use of air-conditioners.
o Avoid use of heaters in winters, instead wear woolen clothes properly.
What would be the advantages of exploiting resources with short-term aims?
Exploitation of resources with short-term aims means consumption of resources for immediate requirement without conservation for the future generations :
1. It fulfils the requirement of the mass population.
2. It provides industrial growth.
3. It provides economic development.
4. It makes present life comfortable.
How would these advantages differ from the advantages of using a long-term irrespective in managing our resources?
The long-term perspective in managing our resources would always be better than a short term perspective because it will help us in protectiong our enviorment and also conserve our natural resource. This is an integral part of suistainable development i.e. there will be resources enough to be used by present generation as well as for the future generations.
Why do you think there should be equitable distribution of natural resources? What forces would be working against an equitable distribution of resources?
There should be an equitable distribution of natural resources among people so that every individual be it poor or rich gets an equal amount of resources to use.
Powerful and rich people grab a major part of resources by using money and power. Human greed, corruption are also some of the forces that are preventing an equitable distribution of resources.
Why should we conserve forests and wildlife?
Forests and wildlife should be conserved for many reasons-
• It is important for the ecological stability of a particular area.
• They are the measure of biodiversity and by conserving them we let all the species survive peacefully.
• Forests are natural purifiers. Plants purify the air by converting carbon dioxide into oxygen which is inhaled by human beings. Also by converting CO2 into oxygen they help in reducing global warming as CO2 is a greenhouse gas.
• We obtain fruits, medicines, chandan and bamboo from forests.
• Forests and wildlife form the major part of food chains and food webs. For maintaining the ecological balance it is necessary that the forests and wildlife should be conserved.
• Wildlife should be conserved to prevent the less found species from getting extinct.
• Forests contribute in bringing rainfall by maintaining a proper water cycle.
• Forests help in preventing floods and soil erosion as the tree roots bind to the soil.
• Industries like timber and furniture industry depend on forests for raw materials.
• Forests also help in maintaining the fertility of the soil.
Suggest some approaches towards the conservation of forests.
Some approaches towards the conservation of forests are as follows-
• Protesting deforestation and annexation of land by human beings for their activities like construction purposes.
• Promoting afforestation and the number of saplings planted should be greater than the number of trees cut down.
• Smugglers of wood like chandan should be penalized for destroying the trees
• Keeping a check on overgrazing of land by cattle.
• Preventing forest fires.
Find out about the traditional systems of water harvesting/management in your region.
The traditional system of water harvesting/ management used in our region are ponds, lakes, nadis (village ponds), tanks etc.
Compare the above systems with the probable systems in hilly/mountainous areas or plains or plateau regions.
Water harvesting systems used in hilly/mountainous regions are Naula and Kuhl. Naula is a small well or a pond wherein water is collected by making a stone wall across a stream. This water is used for drinking purposes.
Kuhl are surface channels that divert water from the natural stream and run at high elevation than the streams to irrigate upstream lands.
Darns are also built over hilly mountainous area to store water and later use it for generating electricity.
So, comparing the two systems we can conclude that in plains the harvesting structures are low, straight and concrete earthen embankments whereas in the hilly regions canal irrigation is practiced for water harvesting.
Find out the source of water in your region/locality. Is water from this source available to all people living in that area?
There are various sources of water in pur region.
• Ground water is one such source. Water from ground is available to everyone for use if the ground water level is sufficient. If the ground water level falls low, people in the area suffer a shortage of water supply.
• Raw water is being made available to our region from Ganga and Yamuna rivers.
• About 115 million gallons per day of ground water is being explored through tube wells.
What changes would you suggest in your home in order to be environment friendly?
Some changes that I would like to suggest in home in order to be environment friendly-
• Install solar panels to generate electricity.
• Replace filament bulbs with CFL’s.
• Install solar heater to heat water to avoid consumption of electricity.
• Re-use plastic containers for storing household materials.
• Replace all plastic bags in the house with paper and jute bags.
Can you suggest some changes in your school which would make it environment friendly?
some changes in school which would make it environment friendly.
• Install solar panels to generate electricity which are used for various purposes like in computer labs, fans, light, etc.
• Planting trees in the school garden.
• Making setup for Rainwater harvesting in order to collect rain water and use it to recharge ground water, watering the plants.
• Using rickshaw for small distances instead of school buses that run on petrol.
• School buses should be run on CNG and used only for longer distances.
• Biodegradable and non-biodegradable things should be discarded in separate bins.
We saw in this chapter that there are four main stakeholders when it comes to forests and wildlife.
Which among these should have the authority to decide the management of forest produces? Why do you think so?
The forest department of the government and the local people living in and around the forests should have the authority to decide the management of forest produces. The forest department is the care taker of the forest and the land.
The local people living around the forests should also have the authority because it is they who have been using the forest resources without damaging the forest and they have complete knowledge of the forest produces.
How can you as an individual contribute or make a difference to the management of
(a) forests and wildlife
(b) water resources, and
(c) coal and petroleum?
(a) Forests and Wildlife
o Stop Deforestation
o Stop hunting/ poaching of wild animals for their skin.
o Stop the conversion of forests land for use of human activities like building houses, industries etc.
(b) Water Resources
o Promote Rainwater harvesting
o Get leaking water taps repaired.
o Close taps while brushing teeth and while bathing when the bucket gets filled.
o Avoid discharge of wastes into rivers, lakes, etc.
(c) Coal and petroleum
o Use bicycle to cover short distances instead of using automobiles that run on petrol.
o Stop using coal as a fuel for cooking purpose and for producing fire in winters to warm the room.
o Use public transport for longer distances.
What can you as an individual do to reduce your consumption of the various natural resources?
We can ensure some of the following basic steps to reduce consumption of various natural resources-
• Prevent excess water flow when the buckets get full.
• Use bicycle to cover short distances in order to reduce petrol consumption.
• Use CFL’s instead of filament bulbs.
• Switch off the lights of room during day and open windows for sunlight to penetrate into the house.
• Use solar cookers for cooking, solar panels for producing light, and solar heaters to obtain hot water.
List five things you have done over the last one week to:
(a) Conserve our natural resources.
(b) Increase the pressure on our natural resources.
(a) Conserve our natural resources-
• Planted 5 seedlings.
• Used bicycle for shorter distances.
• Took Paper bags for shopping.
• Used CFL’s instead of bulbs.
• Installed solar panel over roof for generation of electricity.
(b) Increase pressure on our natural resources-
• Forgot to close the water tap when bucket got full.
• Used plastic bottles and threw them after one use.
• Left the main switch on when left for a two day trip.
• Used electric heaters to warm the room.
• Travelled by car for long distance instead of travelling by train.
On the basis of the issues raised in this chapter, what changes would you incorporate in your life-style in a move towards a sustainable use of our resources?
One should incorporate the following changes in life style in a move towards a sustainable use of resources-
o Use recycled paper.
o Use paper and jute bags for shopping instead of plastic bags.
o Stop deforestation and promote afforestation.
o Avoid use of vehicles that run on petrol for shorter distances and use bicycles instead.
o Throw biodegradable and non-biodegradable wastes into separate dustbins.
o Avoid use of heaters in winters.
o Switch of lights during daytime and work in sunlight instead.
o Practice rainwater harvesting in order to recharge ground water.
o Close the water taps when not in use.
o Get leaking taps repaired.
o Replace filament bulbs with CFL’s
o Install solar panels wherever possible to generate electricity from sunlight.