Ecosystem dynamics nd management, sustainable development, enviroment impact assessment, conservation stragies and principle of conservation

1. Ecosystem dynamics and management,
Environmental impact assessment, ,sustainable
development, Principles of conservation and
Conservation strategies
Presented By;
Arushe Tickoo
DTU, Delhi

2. An ecosystem is defined by the network of interactions among organisms, and between organisms and
their environment.
Ecosystems are dynamic entities, they are subject to periodic disturbances and are in the process of
recovering from some past disturbance.
When an ecosystem is subject to some sort of perturbation, it responds by moving away from its initial
state. The tendency of a system to remain close to its equilibrium state, despite that disturbance, is termed
its resistance. On the other hand, the speed with which it returns to its initial state after disturbance is
called its resilience
Ecosystem dynamics and management
Disturbance also plays an important role in ecological processes. According to F. Stuart
Chapin disturbance is defined as "a relatively discrete event in time and space that alters the structure of
populations, communities and ecosystems and causes changes in resources availability or the physical
environment"

3. Disturbance is followed by succession, a "directional change in ecosystem structure and functioning”
Secondary succession is a process started by
an event (e.g. forest
fire, harvesting, hurricane) that reduces an
already established ecosystem (e.g. a forest or
a wheat field) to a smaller population of
species, and as such secondary succession
occurs on preexisting soil.
Secondary succession
Primary succession is an ecological
succession of plant life, occurring in an
environment in which new substrate devoid
of vegetation and other organisms usually
lacking soil, such as a lava flow or area left
from retreated glacier, is deposited.
The gradual growth of an ecosystem over a
longer period.
Primary succession
It is usually faster than primary succession

4. Ecosystem management is a process that aims to conserve major ecological services and restore
natural resources while meeting the socioeconomic, political and cultural and needs of current and
future generations. The principal objective of ecosystem management is the efficient maintenance
and ethical use of natural resources.
Ecosystem management
Approaches
 adaptive management
 natural resource management
 strategic management
 command and control management

5. Adaptive management is a
structured, iterative process of
robust decision making in the
face of uncertainty, with an aim
to reducing uncertainty over
time via system monitoring.
natural resource management
The term natural resource management is
frequently used when dealing with a particular
resource for human use rather than managing
the whole ecosystem. A main objective of
natural resources management is the
sustainability for future generations, which
appoints ecosystem managers to balance natural
resources exploitation and conservation over
long-term timeframe
Command and control management utilizes a linear
problem solving approach where a perceived problem is
solved through controlling devices such as laws, threats,
contracts and/or agreements.
Command and control management
Strategic management
encourages the establishment
of goals that will benefit the
ecosystem while keeping
socioeconomic and politically
relevant issues in mind.
Strategic management differs
from other types of ecosystem
management because it keeps
stakeholders involved and
relies on their input to develop
the best management strategy
for an ecosystem.

6. Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) is a process which ensures that all environmental matters are taken into
account quite early in the project at planning process itself.
EIA is one of the successful policy innovations of the 20th Century for environmental conservation. In 1989, the
World Bank adopted EIA for major development project, in which borrower country had to undertake the EIA under
the Bank's supervision.
EIA -Three core value
• Integrity - the EIA process will conform to agreed standards.
• Utility - the EIA process will provide balanced, credible information for decision making.
• Sustainability - the EIA process will result in environmental safeguards.
EIA (environment impact assessment)

7. Objectives of EIA
• check the environmental
acceptability of the proposals
compared to the capacity of the
site and the receiving
environment
• ensure that resources are used
appropriately and efficiently
• avoid irreversible changes and
serious damage to the
environment
• protect human health and safety
Stages
Proposal Identification
Mitigation
Environmental Statement
Follow up
Scoping
Screening
Impact Analysis
Review
Decision Making
Feedback
Loops

8. Proposal Identification
A large number of decisions are made at the project
identification and proposal development stage. Decisions
are made regarding:
 the location of the development
 the land uses the development will cater for
the scale, layout and design of the development.
Screening often results in a categorization of the
project and from this a decision is made on whether or
not a full EIA is to be carried out
It also focus resources used on projects most likely to
have significant impacts, those where impacts are
uncertain
Scoping
During the scoping stage the key issues that the EIA will
address are identified. Effective scoping will ensure that
the EIA focuses on those areas where significant effects
are likely, therefore preventing resources being used to
address issues where no significant effects are likely
Impact Analysis
Impact analysis involves characterising the impact in
terms of its likely nature, spatial and temporal
distribution, duration, frequency, reversibility and
magnitude. Finally a judgement must be made as to
whether the impact is likely to be significant or not.
Mitigation
Where impact analysis identifies that a
development is likely to give rise to significant
environmental impacts, mitigation measures are
proposed to avoid, reduce and if possible, remedy
them.
Environmental Statement
The environmental
statement is the vehicle
used to communicate the
results of the EIA to the
decision maker and other
stakeholders in the
development process.
Review
Quality control is an important stage in any EIA. A
review of the quality of the environmental
statement is a way of demonstrating that:
 the ES has met all the appropriate legal
requirements
 the ES contains sufficient information to allow
a decision to be made
 the ES is consistent with current good practice
Follow Up
Follow up is very important in EIA.
It is the stage where the mitigation
measures proposed within the
environmental statement are actually
implemented. It is also the stage
where any necessary monitoring of
impacts is undertaken.
Decision Making
This is the point in the process where
the development is either granted
planning permission or not. It is
necessary at this stage for the
environmental statement to be made
available to a number of statutory
consultees, the public and other
stakeholders

9. Environmental Act # 1. Wildlife (Protection) Act, 1972
Environmental Act # 2. Forests (Conservation) Act, 1980: Amended Forest Act, 1992
The Act covers all types of forests including reserve forests, protected forests or any forested land
irrespective of its ownership
Environmental Act # 3. Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1974: Amended in
1988
Environmental Act # 4. The Water (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Cess Act, 1977:
Amended in 1991
Environmental Act # 5. Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act, 1981
Environmental Act # 6. Environment Protection Act, 1986:
Environmental Acts Enacted in India

10. Sustainable Development
Sustainable development is a way for people to use resources without the resources running out.
The term is defined as sustainability that "meets the needs of the present without compromising the ability of
future generations to meet their own needs."
 Environmental sustainability A state in which the demands placed on the environment can be met
without reducing its capacity to allow all people to live well, now and in the future.
 Economic sustainability. The use of various strategies for employing existing resources optimally so
that that a responsible and beneficial balance can be achieved over the longer term.
 Sociopolitical sustainability. The ability of a community to develop processes and structures which not
only meet the needs of its current members but also support the ability of future generations to maintain
a healthy community.

11. the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), officially known as Transforming our world: the 2030
Agenda for Sustainable Development is a set of 17 "Global Goals" with 169 targets between them.
Spearheaded by the United Nations through a deliberative process involving its 193 Member States
• No Poverty
• Zero Hunger
• Good Health and Well-being
• Quality Education
• Gender Equality
• Clean Water and Sanitation
• Affordable and Clean Energy
• Climate Action
• Life Below Water
• Life on Land

12. Conservation is defined here as: the
management of human use of the biosphere
so that it may yield the greatest sustainable
benefit to present generations while
maintaining its potential to meet the needs
and aspirations of future generations. Thus
conservation is positive, embracing
preservation, maintenance, sustainable
utilization, restoration, and enhancement of
the natural environment.
Principles of conservation and Conservation strategies
Several strategies which are adapted for conservation of
Biodiversity
1. Legislation
2. In-situ Conservation
3. Ex-situ Conservation
4. Recording Indigenous Knowledge
5. International Conservation Strategies
6. Role of Communities in Biodiversity
conservation

13. Legislation
Major
central acts relevant to biodiversity include:
• Environment Protection Act, 1986
• Fisheries Act, 1897
• Forest Act, 1927
• Forest (Conservation) Act, 1980
• Wildlife (Protection) Act 1972 and Wildlife
(Protection) Amendment Act 1991
In-situ Conservation
Conserving the animals and plants in their
natural habitats is known as in situ
conservation.
The established natural habitats are:
• National parks and sanctuaries
• Biosphere reserves
• Nature reserves
• Reserved and protected forests
• Reserved forests
Ex-situ Conservation
Ex-situ conservation of plants and animals preserve/ or protect
them away from their natural habitat. This could be in zoological
parks and botanical gardens or through the forestry institutions
and agricultural research centres.
A lot of effort is under way to collect and preserve the genetic
material of crops, animal, bird and fish species. This work is
being done by institutions such as the National Bureau of Plant
Genetic Resources, New Delhi,
Recording Indigenous Knowledge
The lives of local communities are closely interwoven with their
environment, and are dependent upon their immediate resources for
meeting their needs. These communities have a vast knowledge about
local flora and fauna which is very important for biodiversity
conservation. Much of this knowledge is orally passed on from
generation to generation. Such indigenous knowledge needs to be
recorded and preserved before it is lost.
The first such initiative was the establishment of the Corbett
National Park in 1936. National Parks are highly protected by
law.

14. International conservation strategies
Conserving biodiversity is not an issue confined to any one country
or community. It is a crucial global concern. Several international
treaties and agreements are in place in the attempt to strengthen
international participation and commitment
towards conserving biodiversity. Some of these are:
• The Convention on Biological Diversity: This was signed during
the Earth Summit in 1992. It focuses not only on conserving
biodiversity but also on sustainable use of biological resources and
equitable sharing of benefits arising
from its use.
• The Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of
Wild Flora and Fauna (CITES): This is an international treaty which
is designed to protect wild plants and animals affected by
international trade. The treaty, in force since 1975, controls the
export, import and re-export of endangered and threatened wildlife.
• The Convention on Wetlands of International Importance: This
Convention, also known as the Ramsar Convention, was signed in
Ramsar (Iran) in 1971 and came into force in December 1975. It
provides a framework for international cooperation for the
conservation of wetland habitats
Role of Communities in Biodiversity conservation
Protecting the environment is everyone’s
responsibility.
There are many conservation movements and
initiative in India, which have saved the precious
natural resources.
Nature worship is a tribal belief based on the
premise that all creations of nature have to be
protected. Such beliefs have helped preserve
several virgin forests in pristine form called Sacred
Groves (the forests of God and Goddesses). These
patches of forest or parts of large forests have been
left untouched by the local people and any
interference with them is banned. The practice
dates back to about 3000 to 5000 B.C. Indian
society comprises of several cultures, each with its
own set of traditional methods of conserving
nature and its creations.

15. Zeroth Law of Thermodynamics is the most obvious of all three laws, simply stating that if the
temperature of object A is equal to the temperature of object B, and the temperature of object C is equal to
the temperature of object B then the temperature of object C equals the temperature of object A.
Organisms require the means to survive in a climate of a certain range of temperatures, and evolution has
created organisms with extremely different tolerances to temperature according to where they are located
The First Law of Thermodynamics states that the total inflow of energy into a system must equal
the total outflow of energy from the system, plus the change in the energy contained within the
system. That is, energy is neither created nor destroyed, but may transform from one type to another.
This is relevant to food webs in that the amount of energy being transferred through the food web
cannot be larger than the amount of energy initially supplied by the primary producer (which was
supplied by the sun's energy).
Principles of conservation

16. The Second Law of Thermodynamics states that "energy of all kinds in our material world
disperses or spreads out if it is not hindered from doing so." In other words, the randomness
(entropy) of the universe is always increasing.
It is consistent with Elton's Pyramid of food webs that states that although sometimes total size or
number of organisms can either increase or decrease with increasing trophic levels, the total
biomass ALWAYS decreases with increasing trophic levels, as energy is constantly being lost to the
atomosphere (usually as CO2. The energy from the sun allows living organisms on earth to
temporarily decrease entropy, but our organized systems require an overall input of energy
(provided by the sun).