Environmental science

Environmental science is multi-disciplinary is nature. It comprises various branches of studies like chemistry, Ecology, physics, medical science, life science, Soil Science, agriculture, public health, sanitary engineering etc. Environmental science teaches us to protect and sustain our natural resources of land, water, air and vegetation. Environmental science is the study of physical phenomena in the environment. It is a science that deals with study of the environment, and the solution of environmental problems. It is an applied science as it seeks practical answers to making human civilization sustainable on the earth’s finite resources. In simple words “Environment is sum total of water, air and land interrelationships among themselves and also with the human being, other living organisms and property”.

Environment Explained-

Literary environment means the surrounding external conditions influencing development or growth of people, animal or plants; living or working conditions etc. This involves three questions:

What is surrounded?

The answer to this question is living objects in general and man in particular.

By what Surrounded?

The physical attributes are the answer to this question, which become environment. In fact, the concern of all education is the environment of man. However, man cannot exist or be understood in isolation from the other forms of life and from plant life. Hence, environment refers to the sum total of condition, which surrounds point in space and time. The scope of the term Environment has been changing and widening by the passage of time. In the primitive age, the environment consisted of only physical aspects of the planted earth' land, air and water as biological communities. As the time passed on man extended his environment through his social, economic and political functions.

Where Surrounded?

The answer to this question, it is in nature that physical component of the plant earth, viz land, air, water etc., support and affect life in the biosphere. According to a Goudie, environment is the representative of physical components of the earth where in man is an important factor affecting the environment.

Who is an environmental scientist?

An environmental scientist is a person who is an expert in the subject matters of Environmental science. An environmental scientist works towards solving environmental issues. Environmental scientists bring a systems approach to the analysis of environmental problems. Some of the important works of an environmental scientist are listed below:

• Conduct experiments with dyes to see how chemicals might disperse during a toxic spill.
• Create maps and graphs showing air pollutants over time to help politicians make informeddecisions.
• Evaluate how increasing human populations influence interactions between wildlife and people.
•  Monitor water quality at beaches, lakes, and rivers to detect contaminants and keep people safe.
• Many environmental scientists work for local, state, and federal governments, ensuring that environmental regulations are followed to limit the impact of human activity on the environment. Others monitor environmental impacts on the health of the population, checking for risks of disease and providing information about health hazards. Environmental scientists also work with private companies to help them comply with environmental regulations and policies. They are usually hired by consulting firms to solve problems.

Definitions of Environmental Science

Boring

 “A person’s environment consists of the sum total of the stimulation which he receives from his conception until his death.’ It can be concluded from the above definition that Environment comprises various types of forces such as physical, intellectual, economic, political, cultural, social, moral and emotional. Environment is the sum total of all the external forces, influences and conditions, which affect the life, nature, behavior and the growth, development and maturation of living organisms.”

Douglas and Holland:

“The term environment is used to describe, in the aggregate, all the external forces, influences and conditions, which affect the life, nature, behavior and the growth, development and maturity of living organisms.”

Elements of Environment

Environment is constituted by the interacting systems of physical, biological and cultural elements inter-related in various ways, individually as well as collectively. These elements may be explained as under:

  Physical elements

Physical elements are as space, landforms, water bodies, climate soils, rocks and minerals. They determine the variable character of the human habitat, its opportunities as well as limitations.

  Biological elements

Biological elements such as plants, animals, microorganisms and men constitute the biosphere.

  Cultural elements

Cultural elements such as economic, social and political elements are essentially man made features, which make cultural milieu.

Branches of Environmental Science

Environmental science comprehends all the environmental factors present in the system, and determines the way of life and our synchronization with them, in accordance. An example of this would be that greenhouse effects are related to global warming, pollution is related to population and ozone depletion, which also contributes to global warming. There is no definite demarcation between the branches of study of environmental science; each overlaps on the scope of the other. Yet, to make things systematic and to work upon them, the subject has been divided into the following divisions:

      Environmental Chemistry

Environmental chemistry is the study of alternating chemical patterns and phenomena in the atmosphere. It deals with the production, transport, reactions, effects, and fates of chemical species in the water, air, terrestrial and biological environments and the effects of human activities thereon. Study of natural chemicals present in nature is the another aspect of environmental chemistry.

      Ecology

Ecology is the branch of biology that deals with the relations of organisms to one another and to their physical surroundings. It is the study of the interaction of people with their environment. It involves the study of life and global biological geometrics

      Geosciences

Geoscience includes all the sciences (geology, geophysics, and geochemistry) that study the structure, evolution and dynamics of the planet Earth and its natural mineral and energy resources. Geoscience investigates the processes that have shaped the Earth through its 4600 million year history and uses the rock record to unravel that history - it is concerned with the real world beyond the laboratory and has direct relevance to the needs of society. In be more specific, it studies and classifies hydrology and oceanographic patterns. It studies elements in the hydrosphere, troposphere and the biosphere and it deals with quantitative understanding through research on the evolution of earth and its elements. It also studies  Studying tectonic plates, lithosphere and soil erosions.

      Atmospheric Science

This deals with the study of atmosphere and the interrelation and effects amongst all its components. The study of atmospheric science features interdisciplinary study of the atmosphere and weather forecasting through meteorology; it is the study of atmospheric physics, Climatology, elements of aeronomy and planetary sciences.

Scope of Environmental Science

Our dependence on nature is so great that we cannot continue to live without protecting the earth’s environmental resources. Thus most traditions refer to our environment as ‘Mother Nature’ and most traditional societies have learned that respecting nature is vital for their livelihoods. Environmental Science is a multidisciplinary science and is the study of all the aspects of environment and therefore the scope of environmental science is great. The basic aspects of the subject have a direct relevance to every section of the society. The scope of environmental science can be summarized with the following points.

• Conservation of nature and natural resources.

• Conservation of biological diversity.

• Control of environmental pollution.

• Stabilization of human population and environment.

• Social issues in relation to development and environment.

• Development of non-polluting

Major Threats to the Environment

We all are concern about the issue of environmental degradation. Environment is one of the causes of concern and worry for almost every country in the world. Environmental pollution is the most dangerous threat of modern times. Some of the major threats to the environment are listed below

      Ozone layer Depletion

      Food Cycle

      Deforestation

      Noise Pollution

      Air Pollution

      Acid Rain

      Disposal of Nuclear and Medical Waste

      Fossil fuels

      Acid Rain

      Melting of Ice in the Arctic Circle

      Global Warming

Environment is a wide and complex issue that calls for professionals to solve the issues and problems related to environment. The need for environmental scientists is just increasing with each day across the world. A collective effort of all is needed to deal with the complex issues of environment.

Importance of Environmental Science

Environment is not a single subject. It is an integration of several subjects that include both Science and Social Studies. Environment belongs to all the living beings and thus is, important for all. We live in a world in which natural resources are limited. Without them, life on earth would be impossible. Excessive use of agrochemicals has degraded the environment and has disturbed the ecological balance. Today we all are is affected by environmental issues like global warming, depletion of ozone layer, dwindling forest, energy resources, loss of global biodiversity etc. and that is why the importance of environmental science is great and the implication of the environmental rules to protect the environment is the need of the hour.  Environment study deals with the analysis of the processes in water, air, land, soil and organisms which leads to pollute or degrade environment.  It helps us in careful handling of the issues like pollution, overexploitation of natural resources, food security and sustainable development. Environmental science helps us to find ways and means to maintain the ecological balance. It helps us for establishing standard, for safe, clean and healthy natural ecosystem. It also deals with important issues like safe and clean drinking water, hygienic living conditions and clean and fresh air, fertility of land, healthy food and development. It demonstrates how man can derive benefits from environment without destroying it. It trains us to conserve ours fast depleting natural resources. It helps to understand different food chain and ecological balance in nature. It directs attention towards the problems of population explosion, depletion of natural resources and pollution and the methods of solving such problems.

Careers in Environmental Science

Environmental Science provides an integrated, quantitative, and interdisciplinary approach to the study of environmental systems. It must be admitted that Today’s “green society” has made environmental sciences a hot growth area among those with a background in geology, biology, chemistry and physics. An environmental sciences degree can prepare students for a wide range of careers in industry, government, consulting, and education. Many labor market experts predict that environmental industries will be a major source of new jobs in the next decade. As mentioned before environmental science is a vast subject that has many sub parts which in themselves are again very vast and needs specialization to gain expertise on. Given below are some of the career options in environmental science that you can choose from as per your liking.

Ecology: Being ecologists involves studying living organisms and their relationship with the environment. An ecologist has to analyze how living organisms interact with each other and the environment and find out ways to keep the interaction in its natural form. With growing threat to ecology, need for trained ecologists is growing so if you have passion to protect the mother earth then ecology is an ideal field for you.

Restoration Ecology: The job of restoration ecologists is closely related to rivers and aquatic habitats. They have to conduct various research studies to analyze and suggest some methods to restore the river banks and helpful living organisms in water that are essential for smooth ecosystem. Monitoring local wildlife and different plant and flower species also comes under the purview of a restoration ecologist.

Environmental Chemistry: Environmental chemistry can offer some of the promising career opportunities in environmental science. As the name suggests this field studies the effect and relationship between different chemicals and environment pollutions. It studies how environment reacts to certain kind of pollutions or contamination and what effects it can have on other living beings, such as, humans and animals.

Freshwater Science: Freshwater science is all about studying the causes behind freshwater or rainwater contamination and pollution. The role of a freshwater scientist involves studying the impact of water contamination on the land, living beings, and overall ecosystem. Their job also involves suggesting and designing new methods for freshwater conservation and save freshwater from getting contaminated, etc.

Education: Yes, teaching environmental science to students from different universities is also one of the great career opportunities in the field if you wish to make more people aware of various environmental issues. There are many universities that offer a degree in environment science and require and expert in this field with great teaching skills. If you think you meet these criteria then this is the field for you.

Forest Science: This is one of the most exciting career opportunities in environmental science if you love forests and wildlife. There are many options to choose from in this field, such as, wildlife conservation, forest conservation, and urban forestry etc. A forest scientist has to come up with various ways to strive the balance between the demand for forest resources and maintaining forest ecology.

Natural Resource Science: Natural resource scientists work closely with various government bodies to manage the available natural resources effectively. They have to come up with measures which ensure that no natural resources are wasted or no excessive resources are snatched from the nature as it can lead to ecological imbalance. They work in different sub fields but their ultimate goal is to protect the environment.