Realization of the importance of environmental protection has been growing in the developed world in the later half of the twentieth century and this in turn has resulted in emphasis on environmental education around the world. United Nations has been a major force in this process. In India, the UGC guidelines on the syllabus of Environmental Studies may be considered as the logical culmination of the ongoing environmentalism around the world.

Traditionally, the subject Environmental Engineering has been a core subject of Civil Engineering as civil engineers were the ones involved in the construction of structures used in trans-porting water to cities from distant places, treating and dis-tributing the same. Realizing the importance of sanitation, most of the early human civilizations had constructed well planned drainage systems for the removal of waste. In the modern era, more pollution-related problems cropped up as a side effect of developmental activities and the solution for such problems required an essentially multidisciplinary approach. As a result, in the present day the environment is everybody’s business. Most of the current pollution control measures require knowledge from widely varying subjects such as chemistry, microbiology and various branches of engineering. A breed of books covering the interdisciplinary nature of the subject is there in the international market; however the UGC syllabus goes much beyond the scope of any available single book. This book is aimed at filling the above gap and making the learning process enjoyable for students, rather than making them feel the subject as an unnecessary academic hurdle.

This book is intended to meet the academic requirements of the subject Environmental Studies for graduate students in Indian universities irrespective of their major subject of study. While meeting the exact syllabus requirements of the UGC, this book has a holistic approach to the subject for easy and logical compre-hension. The contents have been prepared keeping in mind the widest possible variations in the background of the users. A comprehensive and balanced coverage of the entire syllabus is the hallmark of this book.

The entire UGC syllabus and supplementary materials are covered in the nine chapters. To avoid confusion with the technical jargon associated with environmental science and engineering, a glossary of terms is provided in the appendix and this could be of particular use to students with little or no science back-ground.

Brief Outline of the Book

In Chapter 1 the evolution of environmentalism and the importance of environmental studies are focused with examples of impact of human intervention on nature. This chapter is designed to give a clear orientation to the students. In Chapter 2, the biotic and abiotic components of the environment are compartmentalized into four conceptual spheres for easy understanding of their interac-tions. The environmental impacts of urbanization and solutions to the same are elaborated in detail in this chapter to jump start the understanding of the subject.

Chapter 3 focuses on the various natural resources such as water, land, forest, energy and the current threats to their sustaina-bility. An understanding of the importance of conservation is the underlying objective of this chapter.

Chapter 4 is completely devoted to Ecology. In addition to the basic concepts, this chapter looks into the specific aspects of forest, grassland and aquatic ecosystems. Chapter 5 describes types of Biodiversity, their significance and ways to protect them. The emphasis is on India as a mega diverse nation. The major hot spots of biodiversity in India are identified and the endangered species are enumerated to promote conservation activi-ties.

In Chapter 6 various forms of environmental degradation such as air pollution, water pollution, soil pollution, marine pollution, noise pollution, thermal pollution, etc. are dealt in detail delineating the various causes, effects and preventive measures. The management of municipal solid and hazardous waste including infectious waste is explained in detail.

Chapter 7 on social issues and the environment sheds light on a variety of topics such as sustainable development, urban energy problems, water conservation, rain water harvesting, watershed management, ozone hole, global warming and environmental ethics. These topics are aimed at improving the overall awareness of the students about the status of our environment and to make them realize their role in alleviating the environmental deterioration. The various constitutional and legal provisions in India to protect the environment is also given due weightage in this chapter. The impact of population explosion on the environment is brought out in Chapter 8 highlighting topics such as human rights and family welfare. The theme of the chapter is the expan-sion of the idea that environment and economy are inseparably intertwined and elimination of poverty and upkeep of human rights is an essential precondition for the maintenance of a clean environment.

In Chapter 9 the basics of chemistry, physics and microbiology required for an in-depth understanding of the working of the nature are described to cater to the needs of the resource hun-gry. The significant international conventions and protocols for the protection of environment and a glossary of technical terms frequently used in Environmental Science are given in the Appendices.

Feedback and suggestions from the users of this book will be valuable in improving the future editions of the book.

BENNY JOSEPH