LECTURE NOTES

Degree and Diploma Programs

For Environmental Health Students

Introduction to Ecology

Worku Legesse, Teklu Mulugeta, Aragaw Ambelu

Jimma University

In collaboration with the Ethiopia Public Health Training Initiative, The Carter Center,
the Ethiopia Ministry of Health, and the Ethiopia Ministry of Education

November 2002
 Funded under USAID Cooperative Agreement No. 663-A-00-00-0358-00.

Produced in collaboration with the Ethiopia Public Health Training Initiative, The Carter
Center, the Ethiopia Ministry of Health, and the Ethiopia Ministry of Education.

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©2002 by Worku Legesse, Teklu Mulugeta, Aragaw Ambelu

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 Preface
The combination of rapid population growth, industrialization and its
associated urbanization has placed an ever-increasing pressure on
life supporting systems of developing countries such as Ethiopia.

There is evidence that natural resources of Ethiopia such as rivers

and lakes are threatened by pollution discharged from towns/cities,
institutions and industries. Indeed the problem becomes more acute
in the river systems flowing through major cities. In the face of world
climate change polluting such scarce natural resources may become
a limiting factor in future development of the nation. In situations
where treated water supply is still unaffordable it may also expose the
communities to water-borne diseases.

Soil erosion is another eco-disaster affecting may countries. In this respect

Ethiopia is believed to be the global spot where the worst soil erosion
problem occurs as it is thought to lose 2 billion metric tons of soil each year
to erosion. Anecdotal example such as Haiti can also be given where the
topsoil has been absolutely removed by soil erosion. Some authorities
believe that it may never recover from this eco-disaster.

Improper solid waste disposal such as household refuse and plastics

is another area of environmental concern in Ethiopia and it is
becoming more acute in urban and sub urban areas. Plastics in use
for various purposes at present are not biodegradable and will greatly
affect the ecology of health and disease in the region.

Although no authoritative sources exist regarding air pollution status

in Ethiopia, use of biomass fuels, congested traffic coupled with
excessive dependence on old imported cars is becoming a matter of
great concern. The precursors for air pollution formation, at least in
Addis, are observed although the problem is not systematically
quantified and the problem is not yet put in place.
To achieve sustainable development in Ethiopia, it is vital that the
above problems should be properly addressed and ecological
integrity of the nation be properly maintained. One mechanism of
achieving this could be to incorporate a course in ecology into the
curricula of teaching institutions at various levels. This course is thus,
and attempt to introduce ecological principles and concepts for
students specializing in health profession at intuitions of higher
learning in Ethiopia so that they can contribute their share to
safeguard our environment.
 Acknowledgement

We are grateful to Ato Tesfaye Tilyae, Gondar College of Medical

Sciences, for his invaluable suggestions on the first draft of this
teaching material. We also would like to extend our thanks for his
inception of the program and for The Carter Center in general for the
financial assistance in sponsoring a series of workshops until this final
version has been finalized. The comments and suggestions put
forward by environmental health professionals at Jimma, Dilla as well
as alemaya universities deserve to be acknowledged. With out their
measurable input and sharp-eyed criticism it would prove difficult to
give this lecture note its present shape.
 Content

Introduction
1. Learning Objectives 1
2. Definition and Scope of Ecology 1
3. Human Activities Affecting Health and the Environment 3
Review Question 8

Chapter One

Introduction to Ecological Principles 9

1. Learning Objectives 9
2. Definition of Terms 9
1.1 Introduction 9
1.2 Concepts of Range and Limits 15
1.3 Habitat and Ecologic Niche 16
Review Question 18

Chapter Two

Ecosystem 19
1. Learning Objectives 19
2. Definition of Terms 19
2.1 Introduction 21
2.2 Structure of Ecosystem 22
2.3 The carbon Cycle 27
2.4 The Nitrogen Cycle 29
2.5 The Phosphorus Cycle 30
Review Questions 32

Chapter Three

Population Dynamics 33
1. Learning Objectives 33
1.2 Definition of Terms 33
3.1 Introduction 34
3.2 Factors Affecting Population Size 34
 3.3 Population Growth and Regulation 36
3.4 Human Population Growth 40
Review Questions 45

Chapter Four

The Biosphere and its Pollution 46

Learning Objectives 46
4.1 Introduction 47
4.2 water Pollution 47
4.3 Air Pollution 52
4.4 Land/Soil Pollution 55
Review Questions 62

Chapter Five

Natural Resources and their Conservation 63

Learning Objective 63
5.1 Introduction 63
5.2 Types of Natural Resources 64
5.3 Conservation of Natural Resources 72
Review Questions 75
Bibliography 76
 INTRODUCTION

1. Learning Objectives:

At the end of this chapter, the student will be able to:

ƒ Define the term ecology and discuss the levels of biological
organization at which ecological interactions occur.
ƒ Discuss the scopes of ecology.
ƒ Describe the causes and ways of preventing environmental
diseases.
ƒ Mention the effects of human activities on health and the
environment.

2. Definition and Scope of Ecology

Man has been interested in ecology in a practical sort of way since

early in his history. In primitive society every individual, to survive,
need to have definite knowledge of his environment, i.e., of the force
of nature and of the plants and animals around him.

Ecology is one of the popular areas of sciences in biology. It is a

pluralistic science in the sense that it depends on a wide variety of
methods and approaches rather than on a limited range of techniques
and concepts. Even if, it is thought as part of biology, one important
way in which ecology differs from most other branches of biology is
that it can be properly appreciated or studied only through a
multidisciplinary approach involving close cooperation from expertise
in several disciplines.

Definition

The word 'Ecology' was coined from the Greek word 'oikos' meaning
'house' or ' a place to live' to designate the study of organisms in their
natural homes. Specially, it means the study of interactions of
organisms with one another and with the physical and chemical
environment. The term “logy” is to mean study.
Another way of defining Ecology is to look at the levels of biological
organizations. The molecules of life are organized in specific ways to
form cells; cells are grouped in to tissues; and tissues are arranged
to produce functional organs. The body organs are integrated to
produce organ system, and the entire array of these systems
constitutes an organism. Organisms exist not just as a single
individual, but in-groups called population. The various populations of
organisms that interact with one another to form a community;
interdependent communities of organisms interact with the physical
environment to compose an ecosystem. Finally, all the ecosystems of
the planet are combined to produce a level of organization known as
the biosphere. Ecology is concerned with the levels of organization
beyond that of individual organism; i.e. population, community,
ecosystem, and biosphere.

Scope

Whether we are talking about humans or any other kind of organisms,

certain principles govern the growth and stability of their populations
over time. These principles influence the pattern of relationships of
organisms with one another and their environment. These patterns, in
all their varied forms, are the focuses of ecology. As a science,
ecology seeks to treat the world of nature including its human
component with a single set of concepts and principles.

Ecology deals with such questions as:

• Why natural communities are composed of certain organisms
and not others;
• How the various organisms interact with each other and with
the physical environment; and
• How we can control and maintain these natural communities.
3. Human Activities Affecting Health and the
Environment

Human activities in an ecosystem have many drawbacks, unless we

are approaching it in an environmental friendly way. The atmosphere,
fertile soils, freshwater resources, the oceans and the ecosystems
they support, play a key role in providing humans with shelter, food,
safe water and the capacity to recycle most wastes. However,
pressures exerted by humans, on the environment, in the form of
pollution, resource depletion, land use changes and others affect
environmental quality. Degradation of environmental quality can, in
turn, lead to adverse human exposures and eventual health effects.

The pressures excreted by the driving forces are in many instances

increasing. They relate to household wastes, freshwater use, land
use and agricultural development, industrialization and energy use.

Household wastes

Gaseous household wastes arise mainly from heating and cooking.

They contribute substantially to both outdoor and indoor air pollution.
Liquid wastes are the by-products of domestic activities. In most
areas of developing countries, feces are recycled for use in
agriculture or deposited on land without prior destruction of
pathogens. Not surprisingly, infectious disease such as diarrheal
diseases, schistosomiasis and hepatitis are endemic, and some times
epidemic, in such areas.

Solid waste can also create environmental health problems. It

consists mainly of non-hazardous materials such as paper and plastic
packaging material, glass, food scraps and other residues. However,
it generally also contains small quantities of hazardous substances
such as paints, medicines, solvents, cleaning materials and batteries,
leading to potential chemical exposures. Production of household
and municipal solid waste continues to increase worldwide, both in
absolute and per capita terms.

Fresh Water

For a large percentage of the world’s population, water supplies are

neither safe nor adequate. Currently, over 1000 million people do not
have access to an adequate supply of safe water for household
consumption. Moreover, the world’s freshwater resources are limited
and unevenly distributed over the global land mass. Demand for
water is nevertheless increasing in several sectors: for drinking water
(domestic needs), food production (agriculture) and product
manufacturing (industry).

Global freshwater resources are threatened not only by

overexploitation, however, but also by poor management and
ecological degradation. Untreated sewage is discharged into rivers
and lakes; industrial wastes are dumped into water bodies; and run-
off from agricultural fields treated with herbicides and pesticides is
leading to water contamination.

Industrial development, the exponential growth of human settlements

and the ever-increasing use of synthetic organic substances are also
having serious adverse impacts on freshwater bodies. Many surface
and ground waters are now contaminated with nutrients, heavy
metals and persistent organic pollutants.

For instance, the River Awetu has been degraded by untreated liquid
and solid waste discharge from Jimma Town, southwestern Ethiopia.
The water is pungent and turns black just before the confluence point
with the River Gilgel Gibe and no macroinvertebrates were found at
this site (Worku et al., 2001).
Land use and agricultural development

Competition for land appears to be intensifying between sectors and

production systems. Agriculture, in particular, can be expected to
become an even more dominant form of land use. Population
increases and the finite extent, to which further land can be converted
to agricultural uses, mean that per capita arable land availability is
becoming an issue.

Agricultural production carries several risks. Thus extension and

intensification of agricultural production systems, together with
fluctuation in the supply of and demand for agricultural produce are
causing shifts in the environmental determinants of the health status
of local communities.

Erosion

Perhaps the worst erosion problem in the world, per ha of farmland, is

in Ethiopia. Although Ethiopia has only 1/100 as much cropland in
cultivation as the United States, it is thought to lose 2 billion metric
tons of soil each year to erosion. Haitit is another country with
severely degraded soil once covered with lush tropical forest; the land
has been denuded for firewood and cropland. Erosion has been so
bad that some experts now say the country has absolutely top soil,
and poor peasant farmers have difficulty raising any crop at all.
Economist Lester Brown of World Watch Institute warns that the
country may never recover from this eco-disaster.

Industrialization

Industrialization is central to economic development and improved

prospects for human well-being. But, if proper abatement technology
is not used, industry becomes a major source of air, water and soil
pollution, hazardous wastes and noise. Industrial workers are often at
highest risk of health impacts. Furthermore, developed countries have
exacerbated the environmental problems now being experienced by
developing countries through transfer of hazardous wastes industries
and technologies.

Major industrial impacts also arise from small-scale industry. In

developing countries, small-scale industry contributes substantially to
economic development, but can create problems for environment and
health if environmental safeguards are not used.

Energy

Energy plays a critical role in basic human survival. Energy has

important implications for health. Energy is also crucial to
transportation and industrial processes. However, production and use
of energy, if not properly controlled may be accompanied by adverse
health and environment impacts.

In developing countries, biomass accounts for about one-third of all

energy use, and in some of least-developed countries, for as much as
two-thirds. Open fires impair indoor air quality, add to the risk of
accidents and jeopardize food hygiene.

In general, the adverse effects on the environment of human activities

are many and appear to be growing in intensity, and affecting larger
and larger areas. Current and future potential pressures on the
environment have major implication for health.

Environmental Threats to Human Health

Environmental threats to human health are numerous. These threats

can be divided in to two:
a. Traditional hazard; i.e. associated with lack of development.
Traditional hazards related to poverty and “insufficient”
development are wide-ranging and include: lack of access to
safe drinking-water; inadequate basic sanitation in the
household and the community; indoor air pollution from cooking
and heating using coal or biomass fuel and inadequate solid
waste disposal.
b. Modern hazard, i.e. associated with unsustainable
development. Modern hazards are related to development that
lacks health- and environment safeguards, and to
unsustainable consumption of natural resources. They include:
water pollution from populated areas, industry and intensive
agriculture; urban air pollution from motor cars, coal power
stations and industry resulting in climate change, stratospheric
ozone depletion and trans-boundary pollution.

Polluted air and water, excessive levels of noise, nuclear weapons

fall-out, over crowded slums, toxic waste dumps, inadequate or overly
adequate diet, stress, food contaminants, medical X-rays, drugs,
cigarettes, unsafe working conditions and other can be regarded as
causative agents of environmental diseases. In short environmental
diseases are those diseases that are introduced to the environment
by man due to his careless behavior. Most environmentally induced
diseases, unlike those caused by bacteria or other pathogens, are
difficult to cure but theoretically simple to prevent. Remove the
adverse environmental influence and the ailment will disappear. This
is simply to say that by:
- Preventing discharges of poisonous pollutants into water and
food
- Avoiding exposure to radiation
- Keeping away from cigarette smoke
- Avoiding synthetic food coloring or material

One of the problems with environmental health concern is our limited

knowledge on those toxic agents that are actually distributed over our
earth, due to different activities by man in the ecosystem. For
example, world wide, there are about 10 million chemical compounds
that have been synthesized thus far. But only one percent is
produced commercially and is regulated.
Review Question

1. Define the term ecology.

2. What are the levels of biological organizations at which
ecological interactions occur?
3. Discuss the areas that ecology is concerned.
4. Have you observed, in your locality, any changes in pattern of
disease occurrence that are related to changes in the
environment?
5. What is environmental disease? Give examples in your setting.
 CHAPTER ONE

Introduction to Ecological Principles

1. Learning Objective:
At the end of this chapter, the student will be able to:

• Explain biotic community and ecological succession.

• Explain habitat and ecologic niche of organisms.
• Mention the major biomes of the world and the dominant
species.
• Discuss the factors that affect the distribution of organisms.

2. Definition of Terms

1. Biomes: a large, relatively distinct terrestrial region

characterized by a similar climate, soil, plants, and animals
regardless of where it occurs on earth.
2. Ecosphere: The interrelation among and between all the earth's
living organisms and the atmosphere, lithosphere and
hydrosphere that they occupy.
3. Limiting factor: An environmental factor that restricts the
growth, distribution, or abundance of a particular population.
4. Tolerance: Decreased response to a specific factor in the
environment over time.
5. Niche: The totality of organism’s adaptation and the life style to
which it is fitted in its community.

1.1 Introduction

A biological community consists of several to many populations each

containing all the members of a single species in a given area.
Species are not fixed or unalterable, however. They evolve and adapt
in response to the environment in which they live. Because,
environmental conditions also are dynamic and constantly changing,
the process of evolution and adaptation of living organisms is never
complete. And yet many biological communities are self-perpetuating,
resilient, and stable over relatively long times.

A. Biotic Community

The most familiar classification system used for grouping plants and
animals is one based upon presumed evolutionary relationships.
However, ecologists tend to arrange species on the basis of their
functional association with each other.

A natural grouping of different kinds of plants and animals within any

given habitat is termed as a biotic community. Biotic community like
ecosystem is a broad term, which can be used to describe natural
groupings of widely different sizes, from the various microscopic
diatoms and zooplankton swimming in a drop of pond water to the
hundreds of species of trees, wild flowers, insects, birds, mammals
etc.

Biotic communities have characteristics trophic structure and energy

flow patterns and also have a certain taxonomic unity in the sense
that certain species tend to exist together.

Individual of the same species living together within a given area is

collectively called population. Such population constitutes groups
more or less isolated from others. A population within a biotic
community in certain region is not a static entity but it is continuously
changing in size and reshuffling in hereditary characteristics in
response to environmental changes and to fluctuations in the
population of other members of the community.

The community concept is one of the most important ecological

principles. Because:
1. It emphasizes the fact that different organisms are not arbitrarily
scattered around the earth with no particular reason as to why
they live where they do together in an orderly manner.
2. By illuminating the importance of the community as a whole to
any of its individual parts, the community concept can be used
by man to control a particular organism, in the sense of
increasing or decreasing its numbers.

The realization that the success of any particular species is

dependent on integrity of its biotic community as a whole has
profound implications for human welfare.

B. Ecological Dominance

Although all members of a biotic community have a role to play in the

life of a community, it is obvious that certain plants or animals exert
more of an effect on the ecosystem as a whole than do others.

Those organisms, which exert a major role in having controlling

influence on the community, are called" Ecological Dominants."
Such dominants comprise those keystone species, which largely
control the flow of energy through the community, if they were to be
removed from the community, much greater change in the ecosystem
would result than if a non-dominant species were to be removed.
Example: If farmers chop down dominant forest trees for cultivation,
the changes produced by the removal are:
• Loss of animal species, which depend on the trees for food and
shelter
• Loss of shade loving plant
• Change in soil micro biota
• Raising of soil temperature
• Increase in soil erosion

Consequently, the stability of the ecosystem would be disturbed. In

most terrestrial biotic communities certain plants comprise the
dominant role because not only do they provide food and shelter for
other organisms but also directly affect and modify their physical
environment. That is: -
1. They build up topsoil
2. Moderate fluctuation of temperature
3. Improve moisture retention
4. Affect the pH of the soil.

C. Biomes

The species composition of any particular biotic community is

profoundly affected by the physical characteristics of the environment
particularly temperature and rainfall. For instance, the kinds of plants
and animals one will find in Simen Mountains in Ethiopia would differ
significantly from those found in the Awash Park.

Ecologists have divided the terrestrial communities of the world into

general groupings called Biomes, which are areas that can be
recognized by the distinctive life forms of their dominant species. In
most cases, the key characteristic of a biome is its dominant type of
vegetation. It could also be said that a biome is a complex of
communities' characteristic of a regional climatic zone. Each biome
has its pattern of rainfall, season, temperature and changes of day
length all of which combine to support a certain kind of vegetation.

Starting at the polar region the major biomes of planet earth are:

i. Tundra

Tundra is the northern most of the world's landmasses. It is

characterized by permanently frozen subsoil called Permafrost, which
has low rainfall. These are bogs and lakes, which propagate
mosquitoes more than any thing else.

Dominant vegetation is moss grass and some small perennials

ii. Taiga

Taiga is a Russian world meaning " Swampy forest". Taiga is mostly

identified with its abundant coniferous forest.

The trees available, mostly conifers are less diverse in number of

species than those in the deciduous trees forests found further south
from Taiga and the soil has different kind of humus which is more
acid. Precipitation is low, but like Tundra there are a number of bogs
and lakes available.

iii. Temperate deciduous forests

This occurs in a belt south of the Taiga where climate is milder and
where rainfall is abundant relative to the amount of evaporation. The
deciduous forest has a great variety of mammals, birds, and insects
as well as modest number of reptiles and amphibians. Because of
the annual leaf drop deciduous forest generate soils rich in nutrients,
which in turn supports a multitude of soil microbes.

iv. Grassland

In regions where annual rainfall is not sufficient to sustain the growth

of trees and evaporation rates are high we find the grassland of the
world. Example of such a biome is the Savannah. The dominance of
grass and herds of grazing animals characterize all. Carnivores are
also abundant. Such biome has a higher concentration of organic
matter in its soil than does any other biome, the amount of humus
being 12 times greater than that in forested soils.

v. Desert

This is an area, which is receiving less than 10 inch of rainfall per

year. Lack of moisture is the essential factor that shapes the desert
biome.
vi. Tropical Rain forest

It is characterized by high temperature and high annual rainfall (100

inch or more). Year round temperature variations is slight.
`q

Tropical rain forest is characterized by a great diversity of plants and

animal species and by four distinct layers of plant growth:
a. Top canopy of trees reaching 60 meters,
b. Lower canopy reaching 30 meters,
c. Sparse under story and
d. Very few plants growing at ground level.

Both plants and animal species exist in greater diversity in the tropical
rain forest than anywhere else does in the world. Tropical rain forest
soils in general are exceedingly thin and nutrient poor relative to
temperate regions. As a result nutrients are locked in the biomass in
the tropics and removal of vegetation may severely disrupt nutrient
cycling leading to ecological disaster.

This brief survey of biome characteristics should make it obvious that

various regions differ in their ability to return to an ecologically stable
condition once they have been disrupted by human activities.

D. Ecological Succession

The process by which organisms occupy a site and gradually change

environmental conditions so that other species can replace the
original inhabitants is called ecological succession or
development.

Primary succession occurs when a community begins to develop on a

site previously unoccupied by living organisms, such as on island, a
sand or silt bed, a body of water or a new volcanic flows.

Secondary succession occurs when an existing community is

disrupted and a new one subsequently develops at the site. The
disruption may be caused by some natural catastrophe, such as fire
or flooding, or by a human activity, such as deforestation, plowing or
mining.

Both forms of succession usually follow an orderly sequence of

stages as organisms modify the environment in ways that allow one
species to replace another.

Eventually in either primary or secondary succession a community

develops that seemingly resists further change. Ecologists call this a
climax community, because it appears to be the culmination of the
succession process. The different biomes of our planet discussed
earlier are examples of climax community.

1.2 Concepts of Range and Limits

Probably no species of plant or animal is found everywhere in the

world; some parts of the earth are too hot, too dry or too something
else for the organisms to survive there. Even if the environment does
not kill the adult directly, it can effectively keep the species from
becoming established by preventing its reproduction, or it kills off the
egg, embryo or some other stage in the life cycle.

Most species of organisms are not even found in all the region of the
world where they could survive. The existence of barriers prevents
their dispersal.

Law of the Minimum (Liebig's Law)

An organism is seldom if ever exposed to a single factor in its

environment. On the contrary, it is exposed or subjected to various
factors simultaneously in its surroundings. However, some factors
play greater role than the others do.

In general, each species requires certain materials for growth and

reproduction, and can be restricted if the environment does not
provide a certain minimum amount of each one of these materials.
This phenomenon is governed by what is known as the law of the
minimum, which states, "the rate of growth of each organism is limited
by whatever essential nutrient is present in a minimal amount". The
law can also be stated as "the functioning of an organism is controlled
or limited by essential environmental factor or combination of factors
present in the least favorable amount in the environment".
Example: The yield of crops is often limited not by a nutrient required
in large amounts, such as water or carbon dioxide, but by something
needed only in trace amounts, such as boron or manganese.

Law of Tolerance (Shelford's Law)

For each species, there is a range in an environmental factor within

which the species function near or at optimum. There are extremes
both lower and upper towards which the function of the species is
curtailed or inhibited. Shelford pointed out that too much of a certain
factor would act as a limiting factor just as well as too little of it as has
been stated in the Liebig’s law. This leads to a concept of range of
tolerance, which states, " the distribution of each species is
determined by its range of tolerance to variation in each
environmental factor."

1.3 Habitat and Ecologic Niche

In describing the ecological relation of organisms, it is useful to

distinguish between where an organism lives and what it does as part
of its ecosystem. The term habitat and ecological niche refers to two
concepts that are of prime importance in ecology.

Habitat
The habitat of an organism is the place where it lives, a physical area,
and some specific part of the earth's surface, air, soil or water. It may
be as large as the ocean or a forest or as small and restricted as the
underside of a rotten log or the intestine of a termite. However, it is
always tangible, physically demarcated region. More than one animal
or plant may live in a particular habitat.
Ecologic Niche

Diverse assortment of Organisms can live in a habitat. Every

organism is thought to have its own role within the structure and
function of a community. This status or role of organism in the
community or ecosystem is termed as ecologic niche. Ecologic niche
depends on the organism’s structural adaptations, physiologic
response and behavior.

An ecologic niche is difficult to define precisely; it is an abstraction

that includes all the physical, chemical, physiologic and biotic factors
that an organism requires to live; but not physically demarcated
space. To describe an organism's ecologic niche, we must know what
it eats, what eats it, what organism competes with, and how it
interacts with and is influenced by abiotic component of the
environment (like light, temperature, and moisture).It is helpful to think
of the habitat as an organism's address (where it lives) and of the
ecologic niche as its profession (what it does biologically). One of the
important generalizations of ecology is that no two species may
occupy the same ecologic niche.
Review Questions
1. What is biotic community?
2. What are the major biomes of our planet?
3. Describe the different kinds of ecological successions.
4. What do we mean by climax community?
5. Explain the difference between habitat and ecologic niche of
organisms.
6. Define the law of the minimum and give an example from your
area.
7. Define the law of tolerance and give an example from your
area.
 CHAPTER TWO

Ecosystem

1. Learning objectives
At the end of this chapter, the student will be able to:

• Define the term ecosystem.

• Describe the components of ecosystem.
• Explain the concept of food chain and energy flow in
ecosystems.
• Explain how materials cycle in the biosphere.
• Describe the laws of thermodynamics.
• Distinguish between food chain and food web.
• Explain the effect of human intervention on material cycling.

2. Definition of Terms

1. Ecosystem: a community and its physical and chemical

environment. An ecosystem has living (biotic) and nonliving
(abiotic) components.

2. Biotic factors: all living organisms in an ecosystem.

3. Abiotic factors: all environmental conditions required to support

life, e.g. rainfall, sunlight, moisture, soil, temperature, organic
matter, etc.

4. Autotrophs: organisms that synthesize their own organic

compounds from simple inorganic substances with the aid of
energy from the sun (photosynthetic autotrophs) or from the
inorganic substances themselves (chemosynthetic autotrophs).

5. Heterotrophs: organisms that ingest other organisms to obtain

organic nutrients.
6. Decomposers: heterotrophic bacteria and fungi that obtain
organic nutrients by breaking down the remains or products of
organisms. The activity of decomposers allows simple
compounds to be recycled back to the autotrophs.
7. Food chain: linear sequence of who eats whom in an ecosystem.
8. Food web: network of many interlocked food chains,
encompassing producers, consumers, decomposers, and
detritivores.
9. Biogeochemical cycle: the cycling of materials through living
system and back to the earth.
10. Nitrification: a process by which certain soil bacteria strip
ammonia or ammonium of electrons, and nitrite (NO2-) is
released as a reaction product, then other soil bacteria use
nitrite for energy metabolism, yielding nitrate (NO3-).
11. Ammonification: decomposition of nitrogenous wastes and
remains of organisms by certain bacteria and fungi.
12. Denitrification: reduction of nitrate or nitrite to gaseous nitrogen
(N2) and a small amount of nitrous oxide (N2O) by soil bacteria.
13. Eutrophication: a process by which a body of water becomes
over-enriched with nutrients, and as a result produces an over-
abundance of plant life.
14. Biomass: the total dry weight of all organisms at a given trophic
level of an ecosystem.
15. Community: the populations on all species that occupy a habitat.
16. Population: group of individuals of the same species occupying
a given area.
17. Trophic level: all organisms that are the same number of energy
transfers away from the original source of (e.g. sun light) that
enters an ecosystem.
18. Nitrogen Fixation: among some bacteria, assimilation of
gaseous nitrogen (N2) from the air; through reduction reactions,
electrons become attached to the nitrogen, thereby forming
ammonia (NH3) or ammonium (NH4+).
2.1 Introduction

An ecosystem is a community of organisms functioning together and

interacting with their physical environment through; a flow of energy
and a cycling of materials, both of which have consequences for the
community structure and the environment (Fig.2.1).

Any area can be considered as an ecosystem as long as living and

non-living elements are present and interacting to achieve functional
stability. An ecosystem may be as large as the ocean or a forest, or it
may be as small as an aquarium jar containing tropical fish, green
plants and snails.

It is important to understand that ecosystems are open systems,

hence they are not self-sustaining: they require an energy input (as
from the sun), and often a nutrient input (as from minerals carried by
erosion into a lake); because energy cannot be recycled, all
ecosystems have energy output, most often as low-grade heat lost to
the environment during each energy transfer between organisms;
although nutrients typically are recycled, the process is not 100%
efficient, and some loss occurs from the system (as though soil
leaching), so there also is a nutrient output.

In describing an ecosystem, it is convenient to recognize and tabulate

the following components:

i. The inorganic substances, such as carbon dioxide, water,

nitrogen and phosphorus, that are involved in material cycling;
ii. The organic compounds such as proteins, carbohydrates and
lipids that are synthesized in the biotic phase;
iii. The climate, temperature and other physical factors;
iv. The producers, autotrophic organisms (mostly green plants)
that can manufacture complex organic materials from simple
inorganic substances;
v. The macro-consumers, or phagotrophs, heterotrophic
organisms (mostly animals) that ingest other organisms or
chunks of organic matter; and
vi. The micro-consumers, or saprotrophs, heterotrophic organisms
(mostly fungi and bacteria) that breakdown the complex
compounds of dead organisms, absorb some of the
decomposition products, and release inorganic nutrients that
are made available to the producers to complete the various
cycles of elements.
Sun

Plants
Nutrients

Decomposer
Herbivores

Carnivores

Fig.2.1. Movement of energy (broken line) and materials (continuous line) in

the ecosystem. (Adopted from Modern concepts of ecology, 1995)

2.2 Structure of Ecosystem

In the ecosystem, a flow of energy, derived from organisms-

environment interaction, leads to a clearly defined trophic structure
with biotic diversity and to the cycling exchange of materials between
the living and the non-living part.

2.2.1 Trophic organizations

Ecosystem has a layered structure based on the number of times

energy is transferred from one organism to another, away from the
initial energy input into the system. Thus, all organisms that are the
same number of transfer steps away from the energy input are said to
be at the same trophic level. From the trophic standpoint, an
ecosystem has two components. These are:
• Autotrophic part: - in which light energy is captured or "fixed"
and used to build simple inorganic substances in to complex
organic substances such as carbohydrates, lipids, proteins, etc.
• Hetrotrophic part: - in which the complex molecules undergo
rearrangement, utilization and decomposition.

Food chain

The transfer of food energy from plants to animals and then to other
animals by successive stages of feeding (trophic level) is called food
chain.
Example:

Grass Æ Grasshopper Æ Frog Æ Snake Æ Hawk

All food chains start with an autorophic organisms. These organisms

are called producers, because they can manufacture food from
inorganic raw materials using sunlight for energy source. Any
Organism that feeds dirrectly upon plant (in this case grasshopper) is
a herbivore or primary consummer; and are in the second trophic
level. Carnivores (like frog of the above example) that feed on
herbivores are called secondary consumers; and those which feed on
these carnivores are tertiary consumers, and so on. Each level of
consumption in a foodchain is called a trophic level.

At each transfer (in the food chain), a large portion of potential energy
present in the chemical bonds of the food species is lost as heat.
Because of this prograssive loss of energy (in the food chain process)
as heat, the total energy flow at each succeding level is less and less
obeying the second law of thermodynamics. This limits the number of
steps in a food chain, usually, to four or five. A final attribute of food
chains is that the shorter the food chain (or the nearer the organism is
to the beginning of the chain), the greater the available energy that
can be converted into biomass (living weight) and utilised in cellular
respiration.

In some cases, the relationship between organisms involved are so

complex that the chain is in the form of a highly complicated and
branching net work called a foodweb, which is the actually existing
feeding relationship in an ecosytem.

2.2.2 Energy Flow and Material Cycling

The existence of the living world, including human life, depends upon
the flow of energy and the circulation of materials through the
ecosystem. Both influence the abundance of organisms, the rate at
which they live, and the complexity of the community. Energy and
materials flow through the community together; one can not very well
be separated from the other. But, the flow of energy is one way; once
used by the community, it is lost. Material on the other hand re-
circulates. An atom of carbon or calcium may pass between the living
and the non-living many times or it may even exchanged between the
ecosystems.

Laws of Thermodynamics

Energy flows in a one-way path through biological systems and

eventually into some low-temperature sink such as outer space.

Two laws of thermodynamics describe the behavior of energy. The

first law of thermodynamics states that energy is conserved; that is, it
is neither created nor destroyed under normal conditions. It may be
transferred from one place or object to another, but the total amount
of energy remains the same. Similarly, energy may be transformed, or
changed from one form to another (e.g. from the energy in a chemical
bond to heat energy), but the total amount is neither diminished nor
increased.
The second law of thermodynamics states that, with each successive
energy transfer or transformation in a system, less energy is available
to do work.

A. Energy Flow

Living things are dependent for their existence not only on proper soil
and climate conditions, but also on some forms of energy. Ultimately,
most organisms depend on the sun for the energy needed to create
structures and carry out life processes.

The transfer of energy through a biological community (or an

ecosystem) begins when the energy of sunlight is fixed in a green
plant by photosynthesis. Photosynthesis coverts radiant energy into
useful, high-quality chemical energy in the bonds that hold together
organic molecules. The transfer of this captured energy from
organism to organism is basic to the functioning of ecosystems.

At each transfer of energy within a food chain, approximately 90% of

the chemical energy stored in organisms of the lower level are lost,
and therefore unavailable to the higher level (second law of
thermodynamics). Since the total amount of energy entering the food
chain is fixed by photosynthetic activities of plants, more useable
energy is available to organisms occupying lower positions in the food
chain than to those at higher trophic level. Expressing this concept in
simpler terms, one might say, for example:

Corn Beef Human

10,000 unit 1000 unit 100 unit
of energy of energy of energy
By moving man one step lower in the food chain, ten times more
energy becomes directly available.
Corn Human
10,000 unit 1000 unit
of energy of energy
The unidirectional flow and efficiency of energy transformation
account for the need for a continuos source of energy to prevent
collapse of an ecosystem.

B. Material Cycling

Living organisms require at least 30 to 40 elements for their growth

and development. Most important of these are carbon, hydrogen,
oxygen, phosphorus, potassium, nitrogen, sulfur, calcium, iron,
magnesium, boron, zinc, chlorine, cobalt, iodine, and fluorine. These
materials flow from the non-living to the living and back to the non-
living again, in a more or less circular path known as the
biogeochemical cycle. Biogeochemical cycles are important
because they help retain vital nutrients in forms useable plants and
animals, and because they help to maintain the stability of
ecosystems.

If nutrient cycling did not occur, the amount of necessary elements

would constantly decrease, and would make the development of
stable plant and animal population impossible, since there is no
constant addition to the source of nutrients from outside (as there is
of energy in the form of sunlight).

There are basically two types of biogeochemical cycles- gaseous and

sedimentary- depending on the primary source for the nutrient
involved happens to be air and water (gaseous cycle) or soil and
rocks (sedimentary cycle). The elements moved about by gaseous
cycle recycle much more quickly and efficiently than do those in the
sedimentary cycle. Carbon, nitrogen, oxygen and hydrogen are
included in the gaseous cycle. Iron, calcium and phosphorus are
examples of nutrients whose cycling occurs via the basic sedimentary
pattern.
2.3 The Carbon Cycle

Carbon is a basic constituent of all organic compounds. Since energy

transfer occurs as the consumption and storage of carbohydrates and
fats, carbon moves through the ecosystem with the flow of energy.
The source of nearly all carbon found in living organisms is carbon
dioxide (CO2), free in the atmosphere and dissolved in waters of the
earth

Fig.2.2. The carbon cycle. Estimated pool size is presented, the numbers
representing 106gm (Source: Kumar, 1997).

The first step in the utilization of CO2 by living organisms is

photosynthesis by green plants. Carbon together with oxygen and
hydrogen, in the presence of sunlight, is converted to simple
carbohydrates. These in turn are synthesized by plants into complex
fats and polysaccharides. The polysaccharides and fats stored in
plant tissues are eaten by animals, which digest and resynthesize
these carbon compounds into others. Meat-eating animals feeding on
the herbivores and the carbon compounds again are re-digested and
re-synthesized into other forms. Some of the carbon is returned to the
atmosphere directly, since CO2 is a by-product of respiration of both
plants and animals. The carbon locked up in the animal waste and in
protoplasm of plants and animals is released eventually by organisms
of decay. Bacteria and fungi attack and feed up on plant and animal
remains, break down the complex compounds into simpler
substances, which are then available for another cycle. After their
work, most of the organic carbon is CO2 once again.

Part of the organic carbon becomes incorporated in the earth’s crust

as coal, gas, petroleum, limestone and coral reefs. Such deposits are
removed from circulation for long periods of time, often permanently.
Some of them are liberated by industrial and agricultural use of these
products; and some CO2 are released from limestone through
weathering. But, the circulation of carbon through the ecosystem
depends upon living organisms.

Green house effect

The amount of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is critically important

in maintaining the earth’s temperature. Carbon dioxide absorbs
infrared rays, and allows heat to stay in the atmosphere, rather than
escaping into space. How much heat is retained depends on how
much CO2 is in the air. The greater the amount of CO2 in the
atmosphere, the warmer the earth becomes, because of the
greenhouse effect. The greenhouse effect occurs because CO2 in the
atmosphere acts as do the glass wall of a greenhouse. The glass
walls transmit sunlight in to the greenhouse, where it is absorbed and
reradiated as heat that does not readily exit through the glass; as a
consequence the temperature inside the greenhouse becomes higher
than the outside.

Carbon dioxide is released in large quantities when wood and such

fossil fuels as coal, oil and natural gas are burnt. This release of CO2
is faster than plants and oceans, which absorb the gas, could handle
it. If CO2 (and other greenhouse gases) levels in the atmosphere
were to increase (due to burning of fossil fuels), the atmospheric
temperature would increase (global warming). This leads to a rise in
sea level (because of glacial melting), submergence of coasts,
change in pattern of precipitation, change in the habitable ranges of
organisms.

2.4 The Nitrogen Cycle

Nitrogen is crucial for all organisms because it is an essential part of

proteins and nucleic acids. About 78% of the atmosphere nitrogen
gas (N2), the largest gaseous reservoir of any element. In its gas
form, N2 is useless to most organisms. However, certain nitrogen-
fixing bacteria and algae found in soil and wet habitats can convert
inorganic nitrogen into forms, especially nitrates, which are
immediately useable by plants (Fig .2.3).

Fig.2.3. The Nitrogen cycle (Source: Kumar, 1997).

When the plant or animal dies, decomposing bacteria and fungi cause
the body to decay so that the nitrogen-containing amino acids are
broken down, releasing ammonia gas (NH3). Nitrite bacteria can
convert the ammonia into nitrite (NO2) molecules, and still other
bacteria (nitrate bacteria) in the soil can add a third oxygen atom to
nitrites to produce nitrates. At this point, we have gone full cycle,
because plants in the area now have a useable form of nitrogen
again.

Nitrogen may be removed from the nitrates in the soil by denitrifying

bacteria, and returned to the atmospheric reservoir, from which it can
be released again by either nitrogen-fixing bacteria or electrification
by lighting. In the latter case, the energy of a lightning bolt passing
through the atmosphere binds nitrogen and oxygen together into
nitrate, which precipitate onto the soil from the air during electrical
storms.

2.5 The Phosphorus Cycle

Phosphorus cycle is an excellent example of a sedimentary cycle.

Phosphorus is necessary element in the hereditary material DNA, in
other vital cellular molecules, and in the structure of bone on
vertebrate animals.

The principal reservoir for the cycle is phosphate rock formed in past
geologic ages, although excrement deposits (guano) by fish-eating
sea birds and fossil bone deposits contribute substantial phosphate in
certain areas of the world. Erosion by rainfall and the runoff of
streams dissolves phosphate out of these reservoirs, forming
phosphorus 'pool' in the soil (Fig.2.4).

Fig.2. 4. The phosphorus cycle (Source: Kumar, 1997).

This makes phosphorus available to plants, which absorb it through
their roots for use in cellular synthesis. Animals obtain phosphorus
from plants; upon death or through normal excretion of waste
products from the body, they return phosphorus to the dissolved
phosphorus pool. However, in the dissolved state, much phosphorus
is lost by downhill transport into shallow marine sediments. Some of
this phosphorus is returned to land by sea birds that deposit
excrement on the shores.

The phosphorus cycle is leaky or incomplete, in that there is, on land,

some loss of phosphate into insoluble forms, and there is a slow loss
of phosphate from; and into the oceans, from which there is only poor
natural return, except over geologically long periods of time.

Human intervention is a significant factor in the phosphorus cycle.

Large quantities of phosphates are mined and used as fertilizers and
for other uses, such as in detergents. The result is that some fresh
water streams and lakes have a great excess of biologically available
phosphate from runoff and sewage. Since, in such bodies of water,
phosphate is often a limiting factor in photosynthesis; excessive
growth of aquatic plants ensues.
This process, called eutrophication, can totally disrupt aquatic
ecosystems with serious consequences.
Review Questions

1. Give brief description of ecosystem.

2. What are the components of ecosystem?
3. What is food chain? What are the differences between food
chain and food web?
4. Define the trophic level. Name and give examples of some
trophic levels in ecosystem.
5. What are the two laws of thermodynamics?
6. How does energy flow in ecosystems?
7. What is the importance of material cycling in the biosphere?
8. Discuss the difference between sedimentary cycle and gaseous
cycle.
9. What are the effects of releasing large amount of CO2 to the
atmosphere?
10. What will happen when a waste that contains large amount of
phosphorus is discharged to water bodies?
 CHAPTER THREE

Population Dynamics

1. Learning Objectives
At the end of this chapter, the student will be able to:
• Explain the factors that affect population size.
• Describe environmental resistance and biotic potential in terms of
population growth.
• Explain the difference between the J-shaped and S-shaped
population growth forms.
• Discuss the idea of carrying capacity in influencing population
growth.
• Explain the factors that regulate population growth.
• Discuss the factors that contribute to human population growth.
• Discuss the impact of unchecked human population growth.

1.2 Definition of Terms

1. Natality: the production of new individuals by birth.

2. Biotic potential: the maximum rate at which an organism or
population could increase under ideal conditions.
3. Environmental resistance: the environmental pressure which
limit a population's inherent capacity for growth.
4. Carrying capacity: a sustainable supply of resources
(including nutrients, energy, and living space) defines the
carrying capacity for a particular population in a particular
environment.
5. Age structure: the relative number of individuals in a
population at different ages.
6. Emigration: individuals leave the population.
7. Immigration: individuals from other populations of the same
species join the population.
8. Exponential growth: pattern of population growth in which the
number of individuals increases in doubling increments
(2,4,8,…).
9. Survivorship: the proportion of individuals in a population that
survive to a particular age.
10. Density-dependent factor: any environmental factor whose
effect on a population varies with the density.
11. Density-independent factor: any environmental factor that
affects the size of a population but is not influenced by changes
in population density.
12. Doubling time: the time required for a population to double in
size.

3.1 Introduction

Individuals are part of a larger organization- a group composed of

members of the same species that live together in the same area at
the same time. Such a group is called a population.

Populations of organisms tend to increase as far as their environment

will allow. As a result, most populations are in a dynamic state of
equilibrium. Their numbers wax and wane in a delicate balance that is
influenced by limiting factors of the physical environment and
interactions with other populations in the community.

3.2 Factors Affecting Population Size

The sizes of any population increase or decrease with change in one

or more of the following factors:

A. Natality (Births)

Natality is the production of new individuals by birth, hatching,

germination, or cloning. Natality is the main source of addition to most
biological populations. Natality is usually sensitive to environmental
conditions so that successful reproduction is tied strongly to
nutritional levels, climate, soil or water conditions, and-in some
species-social interactions between members of the species.

B. Immigration

Organisms are introduced into new ecosystems by a variety of

methods. Seeds, spores, and small animals may be floated on winds
or water currents over long distances. Sometimes organisms are
carried as hitchhikers in the fur, feather, or intestines of animals
traveling from one place to another. Some animals travel as adults
flying, swimming, or walking.

C. Mortality

An organism is born and eventually it dies; it is mortal. Mortality, or

death rate, is determined by dividing the initial population (the number
alive at the beginning of a period) by the number that died during a
given interval. If more organisms in a population die than are replaced
in a given time, the population will decrease. If mortality is low
compared to natality, on the other hand, the population will grow.

D. Emigration

Emigration, the movement of members out of a population, is the

second major factor that reduces population size. The dispersal
factors that allow organisms to migrate into new areas are important
in removing surplus members from the source population.

E. Age Structure

Age structure is an important factor, which influences both natality

and mortality. Consequently, the ratio of the various age group (age
and sex ratio) in a population determines the current reproductive
status of the population and indicates what may be expected in the
future. In particular, the number of women of childbearing age in a
population is crucial in evaluating its growth rate. Usually, a rapidly
expanding population will contain a large proportion of young
individuals, a stationary population a more even distribution of age
classes, and a declining population a large proportion of old
individuals. However, a population may pass through changes in age
structure without changing in size.
Example: In 1970, more than 44% of the population in India was
under 15, but in Britain only 23% of the population was in this age
group. What does the preadolescent bulge in the population of India
mean?

1. Birth rates are high and infant mortality is low;

2. A society so constituted is burdened with a relatively large
number of non-productive individuals.

As the children of the bulge reach reproductive age, an astronomical

rise in population size will occur if the birth rate remains the same,
and this, in turn, will once more inflate the preadolescent group. Thus,
the population bulge tends to be self-perpetuating.

Together, the above factors dictate the rate of change in the number
of individuals in the population over a given period of time. Basically,
assessing dynamic changes within a population largely revolves
around keeping track of additions to that population from births and
immigration, and of losses from the same population due to death
and emigration.

3.3 Population Growth and Regulation

Population growth is the increase in number of individuals comprising

an aggregation. It is not necessarily the result of more births than
deaths, but may be caused by increased survivorship, movement into
the area of new organisms of the species under consideration, or
other factors.
 Growth of a population without increase in emigration or removal by
other means does cause an increase in density, which is simply the
size of the population within a particular unit of space.

Biotic Potential

The maximum growth rate, which a population could achieve in

unlimited environment, is referred to as that population's biotic
potential. In reality, of course, no organism ever reaches its biotic
potential, because of one or more factors which limit growth long
before population size attains its theoretical maximum. Such limiting
factors include: food shortage, disease, competition, predation,
accumulation of toxic wastes, etc.

Environmental Resistance

The environmental pressure which limits a population's inherent

capacity for growth rate termed as environmental resistance.
Environmental resistance is generally measured as the difference
between the biotic potential of a population and the actual rate of
increase as observed under laboratory or field conditions (Fig.3.1).

Biotic potential Environmental resistance Carrying capacity

J curve
S curve

Population

Time

Fig.3.1 J and S population curve. The vertical J represents theoretical

unlimited growth. The S represents growth and stabilization in response to
environmental resistance.
 3.3.1 Population Growth Forms

As a result of the interaction of the biotic potential and environmental

resistance, populations tend to have a characteristic pattern of
increase or population growth form.

A. J-shaped or Exponential Growth Curve

In species or situations where this type of growth form is permitted,

population density increases rapidly, in exponential form (It is called
exponential because the rate of increase can be expressed as a
constant fraction, or exponent, by which the existing population is
multiplied). The more individuals are added to the population, the
faster it increases, because all those that are added also breed and
hence increase the total growth rate of the population.

This exponential J-shaped growth rate may stop abruptly, as

environmental resistance becomes effective more or less suddenly.
The population suffers a crash in number regardless of population
density. This kind of population growth pattern is characteristic of
insects with short life span and most annual plants.

Environmental
limit

Carrying
Capacity

Number of
Population

Time

Fig.3.2 J- shaped Population growth form

 B. S-Shaped or Sigmoid Growth curve

A more frequently encountered pattern of population growth is S-

shaped or sigmoid growth form, where growth starts slowly,
accelerates rapidly in exponential form, and then decelerates and
continues thereafter at a more or less constant level.

The deceleration phase is a slowdown of population growth caused

by the gradual increase of the environmental resistance present in the
system. The deceleration continues until a more or less equilibrium
level is reached and maintained. The upper asymptote of the sigmoid
curve is often referred to as the carrying capacity of that environment-
the limit at which that environment can support a population. This
growth curve is characteristic of larger organisms with larger life
cycles and lower biotic potential.

Carrying
Capacity

Number of
population

Time

Fig.3.3 S- shaped population growth form

3.3.2 Population Regulation

The regulatory factors can act in a density-dependent manner (effects

are stronger or a higher proportion of the population is affected as
population density increases) or density-independent manner (the
effect is the same or a constant proportion of the population is
affected regardless of population density).

Density-independent Factors

In general, the factors that affect natality or mortality independently of

population density tend to be abiotic components of the ecosystem.
Often weather or climates are among the most important of these
factors. Extreme cold, high heat, drought, excess rain, severe storm,
and geologic hazards-such as volcanic eruptions, landslides, and
floods-can have devastating impacts on particular populations.

Density-dependent Factors

Density-dependent mechanisms tend to reduce population size by

decreasing natality or increasing mortality as the population size
increases. Most of them are the results of interactions between
populations of a community (especially predation), but some of them
are based on interaction within a population.

3.4 Human population Growth

Human population has grown rapidly during the past three centuries.
By the year 2000, the world population has reached 6 billion, and it is
doubling about every forty-one year. About 92 million more people
are added to the world each year, making us now the most numerous
vertebrate species on earth. There is good reason to fear that this
population explosion, unless checked immediately, will bring disaster
of an unknown scale.

Many people share a conviction that overpopulation inevitably will

bring crowding, poverty, violence and environmental degradation. In
this view, too many people are trying to share limited resources in
ways that surpass the earth's carrying capacity and over-stress life-
support systems on which we all depend. These fears lead to
demands for immediate, worldwide birth control programs to reduce
population growth.

3.4.1 Human Population History

For most of our history, humans have not been very numerous
compared to other species. Studies of hunting and gathering societies
suggest that the total world population was probably only a few million
people before the invention of agriculture and the domestication of
animals around ten thousand years ago. The larger and more secure
food supply made available by the agricultural revolution allowed the
human population to grow, reaching perhaps 50 million people by
5000B.C. For thousands of years, the number of humans increased
very slowly.

Until about Middle Ages, human population was held in check by

diseases, famine, and wars that made life short and uncertain for
most people. Among the most destructive of natural population
control were bubonic plagues that periodically swept across Europe
between 1348 and 1650. During the worst plague years, between
1348 and 1350, it is estimated that at least one-third of the European
population perished. However, this did not retard population growth
for very long. In 1650, at the end of the last great plague, there were
about 600 million people in the world.

Human population began to increase rapidly after 1600A.D. (Fig.3.4).

Many factors contributed to this rapid growth. Increased sailing and
navigating skills stimulated commerce and communication between
nations. Agricultural developments, better sources of power, and
better health care and hygiene also played a role. We are now in an
exponential or J curve pattern of growth.
 Industrial Rev.
10000

World Population (log millions)

Black Death

1000

Fall of Rome

Iron Age

100
Bronze Age

10
.

.
C

D
B.

B.

B.

B.

B.

B.

B.

B.

A.

A.

A.

A.

A.
00

00

00

00

00

00

00

00

00

00

00

00

00
39

34

29

24

19

14

09

04

01

06

11

16

21
Year

World Population Timeline

Fig. 3.4. Human population levels through history

(source: Cunningham & Saigo, 1995).

Doubling Time

Perhaps the best way to describe growth rate is in terms of 'doubling

time'-the time required for a population to double in size, assuming
that its current growth rate did not change. A look at a country's
doubling time can identify it as a highly, moderately or less developed
country: the shorter the doubling time, the less developed the country.

Thus, for example, with the annual growth rate of 3.0%, the
population of Ethiopia will double in a mere 23 years.
In human terms, this means that just to maintain present standard of
living, everything in Ethiopia needs to be doubled in 23 years-food
production, provision of jobs, educational facilities, medical personnel,
public services, and so forth.
3.4.2 Impact of Human Population Growth on
Resources and Ecosystem

There are already 1.9 billion people who are very poor, and who
always think not of the food they are eating but of their next meal.
Population growth unless matched with corresponding natural
resources, growth of economy and development will create:
a. Unemployment
b. Low literacy rate
c. Shortage of housing
d. Resource depletion
e. Shortage of food
f. Shortage of social services
g. Political and social unrest
h. Unstable ecosystem (environmental pollution)

Of all these problems, creation of unstable ecosystem is the worst. In

a natural state, earth's life forms live in equilibrium with their
environment. The resources available to them govern the number and
activities of each species. Species interaction is common, with the
waste product of one species often forming the food supply of
another. Humans alone have the ability to gather resources from
beyond their immediate surroundings and process those resources
into different, more versatile forms. These abilities have made it
possible for human population to thrive and flourish beyond natural
constraints. But the natural and manufactured wastes generated and
released into the biosphere by these increased numbers of human
beings have upset the natural equilibrium.

Experience over the last couple of decades in Ethiopia has shown

that as human number increased, the population carrying capacity of
the environment decreased. A high population growth rate induces
increased demand for resources and the rate at which these
resources are exploited. In Ethiopia where technology has not kept
pace with the demands for greater productivity, environmentally
harmful and economically counter-productive methods of exploiting
land and associated resources (forests, animal resources, etc.) are
resorted to in order to meet immediate needs. As a consequence of
this, climatic conditions are becoming erratic and soil quality is
declining at an alarming rate.
Review Questions

1. Define each of the followings, and explain its effect on

population size:
• Natality
• Mortality
• Immigration
• Emigration
• Age structure
2. Explain differences between density-dependent and density-
independent factors that regulate population growth. Give
examples for each factor.
3. Discuss the J-shaped and S-shaped population growth forms in
terms of biotic potential and environmental resistance.
4. What defines the carrying capacity of a particular environment?
5. What are the factors that contribute for the rapid growth of
human population?
6. What does age structure indicate in human population growth?
7. Define 'doubling time' in terms of human population growth.
8. Discuss the impacts of uncontrolled human population growth
on the biosphere.
 CHAPTER FOUR

The Biosphere and its Pollution

Learning Objectives

At the end of this chapter, the student will be able to:

• Describe the components of the biosphere.
• List the types and sources of water pollution.
• Explain the effect of water pollution on human health and on the environment.
• Mention the major air pollutants and their sources.
• Discuss the effects of air pollutants on human health and on the environment.
• Discuss the effects of solid wastes on human health and the environment.
• Explain the benefits and problems of pesticides.

Definitions

1. Biosphere: narrow zone that harbors life, limited to the waters

of the earth, a fraction of its crust, and the lower region of the
surrounding air.
2. Pollutant: any substance with which an ecosystem has had no
prior evolutionary experience, in terms of kinds or amounts, and
that can accumulate to disruptive or harmful level.
3. Pollution: Addition of some exogenous substances in the
environment, which are harmful for organisms including human
beings.
4. Biological concentration: increasing concentration of a
relatively non-degradable(stable) substance in body tissues,
beginning at low trophic levels and moving up through those
organisms that are diners, than are dined upon in food web.
5. Environmental pollution: the introduction of undesirable
changes such as the constitution or quality, of water, air and
soil.
6. Point-source pollution: pollutants which enter waterways from
a specific point through a pipe, ditch, culverts, etc.
7. Non-point source pollution: pollutants those which runoff or
seep into waterways from broad areas of land rather than
entering the water through a discrete pipe or conduit.
8. Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD): the amount of oxygen
required degrading (stabilize) wastes.

4.1 Introduction

The Planet Earth along with its living organisms and atmosphere (air,
land, and water), which sustains life, is known as the Biosphere. The
biosphere extends vertically into the atmosphere to about 10Km,
downward into the ocean to depth of about 35,000ft, and into about
23,000ft. of the earth surface itself where living organisms have been
found.

The biosphere, a thin shell that encapsulates the earth, is made up of

the atmosphere (a mixture of gases extending outward from the
surface of the earth), lithosphere (the soil mantle that wraps the core
of the earth) the hydrosphere (consists of the oceans, the lakes and
streams, and the shallow ground water bodies that inter-flow with the
surface water.

4.2 Water Pollution

Water is one of the most important and most precious of natural

resources, and a regular and plentiful supply of clean water is
essential for the survival and health of most living organisms. As a
consequence of rapidly expanding industrialization and excessive
population growths, and most of our rivers, lakes, stream and other
water bodies are being increasingly polluted. Water is regarded as "
polluted " when it is changed in its quality or composition, directly or
indirectly as a result of human's activities so that it becomes less
suitable for drinking, domestic, agricultural, and recreational, fisheries
or other purposes.

Sources of Water pollution

Pollutants can enter waterways by a number of different routs.

Sources of pollution can be categorized into two: point source
pollution and non-point source pollution. Factories, power plants,
sewage treatment plants, latrines that are directly connected to water
bodies are classified as point sources, because they discharge
pollution from specific locations. In contrast, non-point sources of
water pollution are scattered or diffuse, having no specific location
where they discharge into a particular body of water. Non-point
sources include runoff from farm fields and feedlots, construction
sites, roads, streets and parking lots.

Types and Effects of Water pollution

Although the types, sources and effects of water pollutants are often
interrelated, it is convenient to divide them into major categories for
discussion (Table 4.1). The followings are some of the important
sources and effects of each type of pollutant.
Table 4.1. Major water pollutants: source, effects, and
possible controls
Pollutant Main source Effects Possible control

Organic Human sewage, animal wastes, Overload depletes dissolved Provide secondary
oxygen decaying plant life, industrial oxygen in water: animal life and tertiary waste-
demanding waste destroyed or migrates away: water treatment;
waste plant life destroyed minimize agricultural
runoff
Agricultural runoff, detergents Algal blooms and excessive Agricultural runoff too
Plant nutrients industrial wastes inadequate aquatic plant growth upset widespread, diffuse
waste water treatment ecological balances: for adequate control
eutrophication
presence of sewage and animal Outbreaks of such diseases Provide secondary
Pathogenic wastes in water as typhoid infectious and tertiary waste-
bacteria & hepatitis water treatment;
virus minimize agricultural
runoff
Mining manufacturing irrigation, Alter acidity, basicity, or Disinfect during
Inorganic oil fields salinity: also render water waste-water
chemicals toxic treatment; stop
pollutants at source
Agricultural manufacturing, and Many are not biodegradable; Use of biodegradable
Synthetic consumer uses chemical interactions in materials; prevent
organic environment are poorly entry into water supply
chemicals understood many poisonous at source
(plastics,
pesticides)
Machinery, automobile wastes; Vary with location, duration, Strictly regulate oil
Fossil fuels pipeline breaks, offshore and type of fossil fuel; drilling, transportation,
(oils blowout and seepage, potential disruption of storage; collect and
particularly) supertanker accidents, spills, ecosystems; economic, reprocess engine oil
and wrecks; heating recreational, and aesthetic and grease; develop
transportation, industry; damage to coasts means to contain
agriculture spills
Natural erosion, poor soil Fill in waterways, reduce Put soil conservation
Sediments conservation practices in fish populations practices to use
agriculture, mining construction

Source: Starr & Taggart, 1978.

i. Infectious Agents

The most serious water pollutants in terms of human health are

pathogenic organisms. Among the most important waterborne
diseases are typhoid fever, cholera, bacterial and amoebic dysentery,
polio, hepatitis and schistosomiasis.

The main source of these pathogens is from untreated or improperly

treated human wastes. Animal feedlots or fields near waterways and
food processing plants with inadequate waste treatment facilities also
are sources of disease causing organisms.

ii. Oxygen Demanding Wastes

The amount of dissolved oxygen (DO) in water is a good indicator of

water quality and the kinds of life it will support. Oxygen is added to
water by diffusion from the air, especially when turbulence and mixing
rates are high, and by photosynthesis of green plants and algae.
Oxygen is removed from water by respiration and chemical processes
that consume oxygen.

The addition of certain organic materials, such as sewage, paper

pulp, or food processing wastes, to water stimulates oxygen
consumption by decomposers. The impact of these materials on
water quality can be expressed in terms of biological oxygen
demand (BOD)- a standard test of the amount of dissolved oxygen
utilized by aquatic microorganisms over a five-day period.

iii. Plant Nutrients and Eutrophication

Aquatic plants require certain nutrients for health growth and

metabolism. An excess of these essential elements (from such
sources as sewage treatment plants, runoff from animal feedlots or
fertilized agricultural lands), however, can result in a plant population
explosion which leads to serious degradation of water quality and
radical changes in the species composition of the over-fed lake, pond
or stream. The process by which a body of water becomes over-
enriched with nutrients and as a result produces an over-abundance
of plant life is known as eutrophication. Boye Pond, can be a classic
example of eutrophication, which has been receiving a sustained
solid and liquid waste discharge from inhabitants of Jimma Town,
Southwestern Ethiopia, and now on the process being converted to a
marshy area.

Although eutrophication can occur in sluggish streams, bays, and

estuaries, it is most common in lakes and ponds. This is because
lakes, unlike flowing bodies of water, flush very slowly; thus nutrient-
laden wastewaters or runoffs introduced into a lake tend to remain
there for many years.

iv. Toxic Inorganic Chemicals

Toxic, inorganic chemicals introduced into water as a result of human

activities have become the most serious forms of water pollution.
Among the chemicals of greatest concern are heavy metals, such as
mercury, lead, tin, and cadmium. Other inorganic materials, such as
acids, salts, nitrates and chlorine that normally are not toxic in low
concentrations may become concentrated enough to lower water
quality or adversely affect biological communities.

V. Organic Chemicals

Thousands of different natural synthetic organic chemicals are used

in the chemical industry to make pesticides, plastics, pigments and
other products. Many of these chemicals are highly toxic. Exposure to
very low concentrations can cause birth defects, genetic disorder, and
cancer. They also can persist in the environment because they are
resistant to degradation and toxic to the organisms that ingests them.
Contamination of surface waters and groundwater by these chemicals
is a serious threat to human health.
Important sources of toxic organic chemicals in water are improper
disposal of industrial and household wastes and runoff of pesticide
from farm fields, forests, roadside and other places where they are
used in large quantities.

VI. Thermal Pollution

Many industrial processes create problem of thermal pollution by

discharging heat (in the form of hot water, air or effluent) into the
environment. Such industries use a lot of water for cooling purposes
and return this water to a stream at a higher temperature.

The adverse effects of thermal pollution include:

• Change in species composition;

• Fish may migrate or be killed by suffocation (because warm
water holds less oxygen than cold water);
• The BOD of the water rises;
• Increase the susceptibility of aquatic organisms to disease;
• Reproductive cycles of fish and other aquatic organisms may
be disrupted.

4.3 Air Pollution

Air pollution occurs through enrichment (contamination) of the

atmosphere or air with noxious gases and other undesirable
substances; caused largely as a result of burning fuels and through
release of gases by various industries and automobiles.

Sources of air pollutants

Air pollutants come from many sources and contain diverse

chemicals. All air contains natural contaminants such as pollen, fungi
spores, and smoke and dust particles from forest fires and volcanic
eruptions. It contains also naturally occurring carbon monoxide (CO)
from the breakdown of methane (CH4); hydrocarbons; and hydrogen
sulphide (H2S) and methane (CH4) from the anaerobic decomposition
of organic matter. In contrast to the natural sources of air pollution,
there are contaminants of anthropogenic origin. Coal-burning power
plants, factories, metal smelters, vehicles are among the main
anthropogenic sources of air pollutants.

Major Air Pollutants and Their Effects

The most common and well-identified air pollutants are: -

a. Suspended Particulate

This includes all particulate matters such as soot pollen, dust, ash,
smoke etc. Such pollutants are easily seen and the common man
could very easily be made to be aware of them. Major and visible
damages of suspended particulates are:

1. Damage to buildings paints

2. Dirt into clothing
3. Obscure visibility
4. Corrode metals
5. When inhaled, suspended particulate irritates the respiratory
tract.

b. Sulfur dioxide (SO2)

Sulfur dioxide is a colorless pollutant mostly released from industries

and power-generating plants. Once in the atmosphere, SO2 can be
further oxidized to sulfur trioxide (SO3), which reacts with water vapor
or dissolves in water droplets to form sulfuric acid (H2SO4) which is
the cause of acid rain. Sulfur dioxide:

1. Irritates respiratory system

2. Corrodes metals and statues
3. Impairs visibility
4. Kills or stunt growth of plants
5. Is a precursor of acid precipitation
c. Carbon monoxide (CO)

Carbon monoxide, odorless, colorless, non-irritant but highly toxic gas

is found at high concentrations in urban areas. It is mostly released
from motor vehicles, fuel wood combustion and industry. CO is a
product of incomplete combustion. Its effect is that it:
- Binds to hemoglobin in the blood, displacing oxygen and
thereby reducing the amount of oxygen carried in the blood
stream.
- Slow down mental processes and reaction time

d. Nitrogen Dioxide (NO2)

This is a colored gas than any other gas. It is formed when

combustion occurs at high temperatures. The sources of NO2 are
power plants and automobile emission.

Nitrogen dioxide:

• Stunt plant growth

• Reduce visibility by its yellow brown smog it forms
• Contribute to the formation of acid rain.

e. Ozone (O3)

This is one of the constituents of photochemical oxidant.

Photochemical oxidants are formed from a complex series of
chemical reaction when NO2 and hydrocarbons react with O2 and
sunlight to produce photochemical smog.

Ozone formed on the upper part of the atmosphere (stratosphere)

provides a valuable shield for the biosphere by absorbing incoming
ultraviolet radiation. In ambient air (troposphere), however, ozone is a
strong oxidizing agent and damages vegetation, building materials
(such as paints, rubber, and plastics), and sensitive tissues (such as
eyes, and lungs).
f. Hydrocarbons

Those compounds containing hydrogen and carbon atoms in various

combinations are the hydrocarbon groups. Examples are benzene,
and benzo(a)pyrene, which is potent carcinogen. Apart from their long
time effect, they being catalysts for photochemical smog is the most
felt problem.

g. Lead

Lead is a toxic metal, which is traced to automobile emissions from

leaded gasoline. Lead is a metabolic poison and a neurotoxin that
binds to essential enzymes and cellular components and inactivates
them.

4.4 Land/Soil Pollution

Humans and animals used resources that earth could supply for
existence for millions of years. Earth (Land) being natural resources
is also used for disposal of the wastes we generate. Even in the
primitive society the hunters and gathers dispose their waste near
and by their caves.

Solid wastes are the wastes arising from human and animal activities
that are normally solid and that are discarded as useless or
unwanted. It encompass the heterogeneous mass of throw away
from mostly urban communities as well as the more homogenous
accumulation of agricultural, industrial and mineral wastes.

The problem of solid waste was not as bad as it is now. In the past,
the number of population in urban and rural communities was not so
populated. But, the problem of solid waste began when first humans
congregate in tribes, villages and communities. The practice of
throwing waste into the streets, galleries, any where in the yard, and
vacant areas led to the breeding of rats and flies. For example, in
Europe because of waste accumulation at the time of formation of
large communities resulted in increment of the rat population. It was
during that time that the great plague pandemic killed hundreds of
thousands of people in the world.

Present public health science proved that those rats, flies and other
diseases vector breed in open dumps, in food storage facilities, and in
other areas and houses. One study in USA revealed that there is 32
human diseases which have relationship to improper solid waste
management.

Ecological impacts of solid waste include:-

a. Water and air pollution.

b. Liquid that seeps from open dumps or poorly engineered
landfills will contaminate surface water and ground water found
in the vicinity.
c. In mining areas, the liquid leached from waste dump may
contain toxic elements such as copper, arsenic or may
contaminate water supplies from unwanted salts of calcium and
magnesium.

Some substances such as DDT, and mercury are relatively stable;

they are non-degradable and insoluble in water. They are neither
used nor eliminated, but are stored in the body, where they may exert
a cumulative damaging effect on a variety of physiological processes
(Box 5.1.). For example, DDT is soluble in fat. It tends to accumulate
in the fatty tissues of organisms. For this reason, like mercury, DDT is
a prime candidate for biological concentration. The DDT that
becomes concentrated in tissues of herbivores (such as insects)
becomes even more concentrated in tissues of carnivores that eat
quantities of the DDT-harboring herbivores. The concentration
proceeds at each trophic level.
Pesticides

Pesticides are substances, which kill pests and disease vectors of

agriculture and public health importance. Pesticides are subdivided
into groups according to target organisms:

• Insecticides; kill insects

• Rodenticides; kill rats and mice
• Herbicides; kill weeds
• Nematicides; kill nematodes

Insecticides: the largest numbers of pesticides are employed against

a wide variety of insects, and include: stomach poison (taken into the
body through the mouth); contact poisons (penetrate through the
body wall); and fumigants (enter insects through its breathing pores).
Inorganic insecticides

These insecticides act as stomach poison. Lead arsenate, Paris

Green, and a number of other products containing copper, zinc,
mercury, or sulfur are examples of inorganic insecticides. Many of
these products are quite toxic to man as well as to insects.

Botanical

Certain plant extracts are very effective contact poisons, providing

quick knockdown of insects. Most botanical preparations are non-
toxic to humans, and can be safely used.

Chlorinated hydrocarbons

These are contact poisons. DDT, chlordane, lindane, endrine, alderin

are some of the chlorinated hydrocarbons. These insecticides are
broad-spectrum, and act primarily on the central nervous system,
causing the insect to go through a series of convulsions prior to
death. They are also persistent in the environment, breaking down
very slowly, and therefore, retaining their effectiveness for a relatively
long period after application.

Organophosphates

Organophosphate are broad-spectrum contact poisons. Unlike

chlorinated hydrocarbons, organophosphates are not persistent,
usually breaking down two weeks or less after application. They are
nerve poisons, which act to inhibit the enzyme cholinesterase,
causing the insect to lose coordination and go into convulsion. Methyl
parathion, phosdrin and malathion are examples of this group.

Carbamates

These are contact poisons, which act in a manner similar to the

organophosphates. Carbamates are widely used in public health work
and agriculture because of their rapid knockdown of insects and low
toxicity to mammals.

Pesticide Benefits

Disease control

Insects, rodents and ticks serve as vectors in the transmission of a

number of disease-causing pathogens and parasites. Malaria, yellow
fever, trypanosomiasis, onchocerciasis and plague (Black Death) are
some of human diseases that are transmitted by disease vectors
(insects and rodents). All of these diseases can be reduced by careful
use of insecticides.

Crop protection

Plant diseases, insects, bird predation, and competition by weeds

reduce crop yield worldwide by at least one-third. Post-harvest losses
to rodents, insects, and fungi may as much as another 20 to 30
percent. Without the use of pesticides, these losses might be much
higher.
Pesticide Problems

While synthetic chemical pesticides have brought us great economic

and social benefits, they are also causing a number of serious
problems. Some of the problems are:

• Killing of beneficial species;

• Development of resistance;
• Environmental contamination
• Hazards to human health especially workers who do not use
personal protection equipment during application (See Fig 4.1).

Fig 4.1. A Farmer in Jimma Zone ready to spray a herbicide with out
wearing any form of personal protective equipment.

Radioactive Materials

There are various kinds of atoms of each elemental substance, each

with a slightly different make-up, some radioactive, some not
radioactive.

When radioactive materials are released into the environment, they

become dispersed and diluted, but they may also become
concentrated in living organisms and during food chain transfers by a
variety of means. Radioactive substances may also simply
accumulate in water, soils sediments, or air if the input exceeds the
rate of natural radioactive decay.

Radioactive materials have the same chemical properties as the non-

radioactive forms. Thus, radioactive iodine (I131), for example, can be
incorporated into thyroxin, the thyroid hormone, as easily as non-
radioactive iodine (I127). Strontium 90 is a radioactive substance. It is
chemically very similar to calcium, and thus tends to be accumulated
in the bones and other tissues rich in calcium. It can also damage the
blood-forming center in the bone marrow.

Prevention and Control of Pollution

As in disease, pollution prevention is far better and more desirable

than its cure. There are various measures that can be taken for
preventing pollution. The followings are some of the measures:

a. Recycling and reuse of waste materials;

b. Waste reduction;
c. Control the use of chemicals;
d. Proper disposal of wastes;
e. Treatment of wastes before discharge;
f. Use of “cleaner” energy sources, such as sun energy, wind,
etc.;
g. Reduce emission of air pollutants using different techniques;
h. Formulation of rules and regulations.

Box 4.1.
Minamata Disease
In the early 1950s, people in the small coastal village of
Minamata, Japan, noticed strange behavior that they called
dancing cats. inexplicably, cats would begin twitching,
stumbling, and jerking about, as they were drunk. Many became
"suicidal" and staggered off docks in to the ocean. The residents
didn't realize at the time, but they were witnessing an ominous
warning of an environmental health crisis that would make the
name of their village synonymous with a deadly disease. Their
cats were suffering from brain damage that we now know was
caused by methyl mercury poisoning. In 1956, the first human
case of neurological damage was reported. A five-year old girl
who had suddenly lapsed in to a convulsive delirium was
brought into the local clinic. Within a few weeks there seemed to
be an epidemic of nervous problems including numbness,
tingling sensations, headaches, blurred vision, slurred speech,
and loss of muscle control. For an unlucky few, these milder
symptoms were followed by violent trembling paralysis and even
death. An abnormally high rate of birth defects also occurred.
Children were born with tragic deformities; paralysis and
permanent mental retardation. Lengthy investigations showed
that these symptoms were caused by mercury from fish and
seafood that formed a major part of the diet of both humans and
their cats. For years, the Chisso chemical plant (Plastic
Manufacturer) had been releasing residues containing mercury
into Minamata Bay. Since elemental mercury is not water
soluble, it was assumed that it would sink into the bottom
sediments and remain inert. Scientists discovered, however, that
bacteria living in the sediments were able to convert metallic
mercury into soluble methyl mercury, which was absorbed from
the water and concentrated in the tissues of aquatic organisms.
People who ate fish and shellfish from the Bay were exposed to
dangerously high levels of this toxic chemical. Altogether, more
than 3,500 people were affected and about fifty died of what
became known as Minamata disease.
Review Questions

1. What are the three main components of the biosphere?

2. What are the types and sources of water pollution?
3. What are point-source and non-point source of pollution? Give
examples for each.
4. Give some examples of diseases that are related to water
pollution.
5. What is eutrophication? What causes it?
6. What are the major air pollutants and their effects on the
environment and human health?
7. What are the main anthropogenic sources of air pollutants?
8. Discuss the impacts of indiscriminate disposal of solid wastes
on human health the environment.
9. What will happen when a large amount of oxygen- demanding
waste is discharged to water bodies?
10. What are the effects of thermal pollution?
11. Discuss the benefits and disadvantages of pesticides
 CHAPTER FIVE

Natural Resources and their Conservation

Learning Objective:

At the end of this chapter, the student will be able to:

• List the different types and groups of resources

• Discuss the different conservation methods
• Mention environmentally friendly/ safe/ energy sources

Definition of terms:

1. Energy: The capacity to do work

2. Mineral: Inorganic nutrient, which is mostly found in the earth's
crust.
3. Mulch: A layer of organic material applied to the ground
surface to the ground surface to retain and conserve moisture.
4. Renewable resource: Resource normally replaced or
replenished by natural processes; resources not depleted by
moderate use.
5. Recycling: Processing of discarded materials into new, useful
products; not the same as reuse of materials for their original
purpose, but the terms are often used interchangeably.
6. Composting: The Process of making compost by
decomposition of vegetable and other degradable organic
wastes.

5.1 Introduction

A Resource is any useful information, material, or service. Within this

generalization, we can differentiate between natural resources (goods
and service supplied by our environment, including sinks for wastes)
and human resources (human wisdom, experience, skill, labor, and
enterprise). It is useful to distinguish between exhaustible (non-
renewable), renewable (non-exhaustible) and intangible
resources.

Modern civilization entails the high risk of irreversible deterioration of

the environment, which accompanies overpopulation, overproduction,
over wastage and the exploitation of ever-increasing amounts of
natural resources such as source rocks for ever-declining proportions
of useful products, e.g., Minerals. Any perturbation in the broad
framework of the inter-relationships between living organisms and
their environment may influence the availability of resources to
human societies.

Natural resources can be broadly classified into biological and non-

biological, and includes such resources as minerals and industrial,
agricultural, forestry and food resources, power and energy, plant and
animal, range and water. As explained above, resources may be
renewable or non-renewable. Biological resources such as fish are of
course, can be replenished, but such resources as nitrogen, iron and
energy may also some time be renewable through not to the same
extent as forests and fisheries.

Abstract or intangible resources include open space, beauty, serenity,

genius, information, diversity and satisfaction. Unlike tangible
resources often are increased by use and multiplied by sharing.
These non-material resources can be important economically.

5.2 Types of Natural Resources

The functioning of ecosystems, including man's survival and

happiness, depends on the availability, preservation and recycling of
natural resources such as minerals, water, land and energy sources.
These resources are, however, not unlimited and many countries still
continue to dream of an ever increasing Gross National Product
based on obsolescence and wasteful practices.
Any perturbation in the broad framework of the inter-relationships
between living organisms and their environment may influence the
availability of resources to human societies.

5.2.1 Forest Resources

Forests are unevenly distributed over the earth. Large and densely
inhabited areas are sometimes poorly covered with forest, whereas
sparsely populated areas of the humid tropics and the boreal forest
belt are dominant woodland. Some 20 % of the forested area belongs
to the former USSR,
Africa, central and South America each; about 16% are shared
between North America and Asia and the remaining 4% occur in
Europe.
It is being destroyed rapidly all over the world. In South-east Asia the
forest is being cleared at an estimated rate of 5 million/ha/yr., in Africa
2 million/ha/yr., in South America 8 million/ha/yr.

To a great degree, the type and density of the natural forest

(vegetation) of Ethiopia reflect its rainfall and temperature distribution
patterns, although human use (and misuse) has drastically altered its
structure and composition. It has been estimated that the natural
vegetation of the country, before manmade changes became
significant, consisted of 34% forest (covering most of the highlands),
20 % woodland and tree savanna, and 32% grassland and steppe.
Today only 3-4% of the land is in forest, 8% in woodland. Cultivated
land has largely replaced forest and development projects contributed
their share by clear felling as is the case for the Gilgel Gibe
Hydroelectric dam construction (See Fig 5.1).
Fig 5.1. Forest clearance at the site of Gilgel Gibe Hydroelectric dam
construction, Region 4, Southwestern Ethiopia. Trees measuring
up to 1.6 m in diameter have been removed.

Consequences of Forest Destruction

Forests are important regulators of ecosystem. They exert significant

effects on the water budget and the hydrological cycle. In areas of
heavy rainfall, forest plants intercept a large fraction of the rain. This
water evaporates quickly and returns to the hydrological cycle.
Fig 5.2. The Hydrologic Cycle (Source: Kumar, 1997).

Some of the water reaching the forest floor penetrates into the soil
through the litter and the loose soil surface, and there is little surface
run-off. It is only after some period of time that the seeped water
reaches the streams and rivers. This time lag is an important device
to regulate the water discharge into rivers, and in this way, flooding is
prevented or minimized. On the other hand, in dry periods also the
forest soil continues to supply water slowly to the streams and rivers.

Destruction of forest changes the above situation immediately. The

hydrological cycle is disrupted and the water level of the rivers cannot
be properly regulated. This causes flooding. In dry periods, the rivers
tend to dry up, affecting irrigation and power generation. In deforested
areas, erosion of soil occurs fairly briskly, especially on steep slopes.
This removes the fertile topsoil and also loads the rivers with much
suspended matter. Deforestation thus greatly increases the quantity
of detritus in many tropical rivers. This detritus causes premature
filling up of water reservoirs, etc.

Large-scale forest destruction often produces grave climatic

consequences, especially desertification and aridity. This result from
reduction of evaporation as the tree canopies (cut and removed) no
longer intercept rainwater, and also because rapid run-off of
precipitation occurs in the absence of the forest cover.

5.2.2 Mineral Resources

A Mineral is a naturally occurring, inorganic, crystalline solid that has

a definite chemical composition and characteristic physical properties.
There are thousands of known and described minerals in the world.
Most economically valuable minerals exist everywhere in small
amounts; the important thing is to find them concentrated in
economically recoverable levels.
Until recently little attention was paid to conservation of mineral
resources because it was assumed that there were plenty for
centuries to come and that nothing could be done to save them
anyway. But this assumption is dead wrong.

World industry depends on about eighty minerals, some which exist in

plentiful supplies. Three-fourth of the eighty minerals are abundant
enough to meet all of our anticipated needs or have readily available
substitutes. At least eighteen minerals, including tin, platinum, gold,
silver, and lead, are in short supply.

5.2.3 Soil Resources

Of all the earth's crust resources, the one we take most for granted is
soil. It can be considered an ecosystem by itself. We are terrestrial
animals and depend on soil for life, yet most of us think of it only in
negative terms. Soil is a marvelous substance, a living resource of
astonishing beauty, complexity and frailty. Half of the soil content is
mineral, and the rest is air and water together with a little organic
matter from plant and animal residue.

We face a growing scarcity of good farmland to feed the world's

rapidly growing human population. Only about 10% of the earth's land
area (14.78 million sq. km of a total of 144.8 million sq. km) is
currently used for agricultural production.

With careful husbandry, soil is a renewable resource that can be

replenished and renewed indefinitely. Agriculture is the area in which
soil is most essential and also most often lost through erosion.
Therefore, the greatest potential for soil conservation and rebuilding
lies on agricultural practices. The most important considerations in a
soil conservation program are topography, ground cover, climate, soil
type, and tillage system.

Due to mismanagement, in Ethiopia about 2 billion tons of soil is

eroded annually, reducing the country's food production capacity by
2-3% per annum. About 50% of the highlands had been significantly
eroded by the mid 1980s, 4% had already been lost to agriculture due
to erosion, and only 18% were relatively free from erosion.
These days terracing and plantation activities made by the extension
program in different parts of the country is a good measure for soil
conservation.

5.2.4 Energy resources

Energy is the ability to do work such as moving matter over a distance

or causing a heat transfer between two objects at different
temperatures.

Oil, natural gas and other petroleum products constitute major

sources of energy to fuel our economy. Other resources of energy are
heat from the sun, heat from the earth, and the harnessing of wind,
ocean and tides. Water wheels, windmills and hot water from thermal
springs have been used as energy sources in some countries, and of
course coal has been a major source of energy for a century or more
in England.
Renewable energy resources like Hydropower, the sun, wind, tides
and biomass are nor likely to make significant contributions to the
world's energy for the developed nations. But these renewable
sources are expected to play an increasingly important role in the
energy use pattern of many developing countries like Ethiopia. It is
not environmentally friendly to completely shift the hunger for
petroleum to the more abundant but still finite coal, shell and heavy oil
reserves; because it will increase the level of CO2 which is the known
greenhouse gas.

In this case, biomass conversion has unique advantages over the

commonly used energy technologies. Unlike petroleum or coal,
biomass resources are renewable. Conversion of municipal and
industrial wastes in to useful fuels amounts to killing two birds with
one stone; the energy supplies are increased, and the environment is
cleaned up.

Many developing countries have a substantial reliance up on wood

fuel (e.g. charcoal) and, to a lesser extent, crop wastes as their
source of energy. Table 5.1 shows the percentage degree of reliance
on this “traditional” fuel. Countries with the highest reliance on
traditional fuels or energy sources tend to be the poorest.
Table 5.1. Developing countries dependence on traditional fuels
(traditional fuels as a percentage of total primary energy)

Country Percentage Country Percentage

Nepal 93 Senegal 60
Malawi 92 Yemen 58
Tanzania 91 Fiji 55
Guinea-Bissau 89 Indonesia 49
Ethiopia 89 Sri Lanka 45
Sudan 83 Botswana 45
Paraguay 83 St Vincent 44
Niger 80 St Lucia 39
Uganda 71 Costa 38
Rica
Kenya 71 Bolivia 35
Gambia 70 Morocco 35
Haiti 70 Zambia 35
Bangladesh 70 Zimbabwe 30
Solomon 66 Turkey 24
Islands
Liberia 64

Source: World Bank /UNDP energy assessment for developing

Countries.

Indeed, in many ways, the extents to which traditional fuels are used
as an indicator of the stage of economic development.
 Case study:

The primary use of wood fuel is cooking. As wood become

scares, so cooking habits may change, sometimes to the
detriment of nutrition. Fuel scarcity also inhibits the
introduction of new nutritious foods such as Soya beans, due to
the extra cooking time required. The cost of such dietary
changes, and the foregone benefits from the inability to
introduce new foods, is obviously complex to estimate and no
empirical work appears to be available. But it is a positive cost,
which must be debited to resource mismanagement. Apart from
collection time and nutrition effects, fuel wood scarcity has a
third impact. As the wood becomes scarce, animal dung and
crop residue are used as energy source rather than being
applied to the soil as fertilizer and soil conditioners. Study
conducted in Ethiopia in 1984 estimates that up to 90% of cattle
dung produced in Eritrea, and 60% in Tigrai and Gondar,
Ethiopia, is used as fuel. This estimate is about 7.9 million tones
of dung per year. In Ethiopia, dung is sold to urban markets.

5.3 Conservation of Natural Resources

Conservation in the broadest sense has always been one of the most
important applications of ecology. Conservation broadly means sound
land or water use planning. It is concerned with the maintenance of
natural systems with their moderate, systematic, planned and
regulated utilization and exploitation for the long-term benefit of
mankind.

Unmodified natural ecosystem as well as those ecosystems that have

been changed to differing extents through human activity may be
expected to play an important role in the future development of
environmental biology. The unmodified ecosystems constitute a kind
of protected area and characteristically contain a rich variety of
organisms, some of which can serve as reliable indicators for
disturbance in the system. As a consequence of increasing tampering
of nature by man, natural reserves are greatly dwindling and are
becoming the main sanctuaries for
wild plants and animals.

The aim of conservation is twofold:

1. To ensure the preservation of a quality environment that

considers esthetic and recreational as well as product needs
and
2. To ensure a continuous yield of useful plants, animals, and
materials by establishing a balanced cycle of harvest and
renewal.

In addition to conservation of natural resources, man is also greatly

concerned with as much preservation of environmental quality as is
reasonably possible. The last two decades has shown and realized
that man is capable of inducing significant alterations in the
environment either internationally or inadvertently. Lose of life by
floods, droughts, cyclones, etc. can witness this.

Concerning mineral conservation, there is great potential for

extending our supplies of economic minerals and reducing the effect
of mining and processing through recycling. For scare and or
valuable metals, their waste products are exploited as resource using
recycling methods. On the other hand, new materials can reduce
mineral consumption or new technologies developed to replace
traditional minerals and mineral uses, by substitution.

Composting is one way of recycling materials. The composting

process has always occurred in nature. If organic materials are
subjected to aerobic microbacterial decomposition, the end product
remaining after is humus material commonly known as compost.
 Protein
Amino acids
Lipids Nutrients Microorganisms
Cellulose + +
Lignin
Ash

Compost + New cell

Dead
cell
Fig.5.3. Composting process (Ehlers and Steel, 1965)

The other method of resource conservation is by forestation, which is

actually important for soil, wildlife and plant conservation. In fact, wild
life is often a reliable indicator of the state of health of an
environment.
The historical record of resource management in much of Ethiopia,
particularly in the area of seed/plow agriculture, has been rather
dismal, characterized by exploitation, crises, and lack of a
harmonious relationship between man and the environment.
Formulated in 1990, the National conservation strategy tries to
develop a more integrated and participatory approach to natural
resources issues. Integrated, participatory planning is essential if
Ethiopia's renewable and nonrenewable resources are to be utilized
in a rational and sustainable manner and ecologically sound
agricultural systems are to be developed to support the rapidly
growing population.
In general the conservation of natural habitats and the protection of
biological diversity is important for sustainable development at levels
ranging from the global to the local.
Review questions:

1. Define the following terms

- Resource
- Exhaustible and non-exhaustible resource (give
examples for each).
2. What are the current activities that are undertaking in our
country regarding resource conservation?
3. What is the importance of recycling and reuse of resources
other than conservation of a specific resource? Give example.
4. What are clean/environmentally friendly/ energy sources?
Which one is feasible to our country, Ethiopia?
5. Discuss the impact of poor resource handling practices in
Ethiopia.
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Ehlers, V.M.; Ernest, S.(1965). MUNICIPAL AND RURAL

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Emmel, Thomas C., An Introduction to ECOLOGY AND

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Kumar, H.D. Modern Concepts of Ecology. 8th revised ed. 1997.

Nadakavukaren, A. Man and Environment: A Health Perspective.

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