Components of environment

COMPONENTS OF ENVIRONMENT
AIR, WATER, SOIL
By
P. RAMESH
Research Scholar
S.V. University, Tirupati

An environment comprises of two basic components
Abiotic Components
Biotic Components

Biotic Components
It comprises the living part of the environment,
which includes the association of a number of
interrelated populations belonging to different
species in a common environment.
 The populations are that of animal community,
plant community and microbial community.

Air is a mixture of different gases Including nitrogen, oxygen,
carbon dioxide, water vapour
There are other gases that are useful but come in very small
quantities
AIR

Importance of Air for the Survival of Life
Air is a mixture of many gases. Oxygen and nitrogen
are the significant components of air that play an
important role in the survival of life on earth.
Air is always around us, though we have never seen it
but always felt its presence.
Air can be felt when the leaves of the trees rustle and
the clothes hanging on the cloth wires swag.
The pages of a book start fluttering when the fan in
the room is switched on. The wind makes the kite fly.
During storm the wind blows with high speed which
can also uproot trees and blow off rooftops

We all need oxygen for respiration. The terrestrial lives directly
take oxygen from the atmosphere for breathing. What about the
organisms living in water or soil? Even they need oxygen in
order to remain alive.
Air in small concentrations is dissolved in water and aquatic
organisms take this oxygen.

Animals are dependent on plants for oxygen and
plants are dependent on animals for carbon dioxide
(plants use carbon dioxide as a raw material for
producing food). Hence plants and animals are
interdependent and they maintain a balance between
carbon dioxide and oxygen in the atmosphere

Fish need air that is in water to live

Air is important in allowing things to burn

The water is a chemical substance with the formula H2O.
The water is very important for life, because it is vital. The
animals or humans drink water because the body needs 75%
water to do exercise for example: walk.
Water covers 70% of the Earth. Like two thirds parts of the earth
WATER

Water is the most common liquid on Earth. It covers about
71.4% of the Earth.
Pure water has no smell, taste, or color. Lakes, oceans, and
rivers are made of water
Rain is water that falls from clouds in the sky. If water gets
very cold (below 0 degrees Celsius), it freezes and becomes ice.
Frozen rain is hail.
Snow is formed from water vapour, not rain. If water gets very
hot (above 100 degrees Celsius), it boils and becomes steam.
Water is very important for life.

Sources of Fresh Water
Sources of Fresh Water
Surface water:
Surface water is water in a river, lake or fresh water
wetland. Surface water is naturally replenished by
precipitation and naturally lost through discharge to
the oceans, evaporation, and sub-surface seepage

Ground Water:
Sub-surface water, or groundwater, is fresh water located in the
pore space of soil and rocks. It is also water that is flowing within
aquifers below the water table.
Desalination:
Desalination is an artificial process by which saline water
(generally sea water) is converted to fresh water.

IMPORTANCES OF THE WATER
Human uses the water in:
Agriculture: The most important for the agriculture is for
irrigation.
For drinking: Because the body need 75% of water to do exercise.

Washing: Washing is also an important component of
several aspects of personal body hygiene.
Fire extinction: One of the important use of the water
is the fire extinction.

Recreation: For example swimming, waterskiing,
boating, surfing and diving.
Industrial applications: Water is used in power
generation.

• In the animal life the water is essential to life.
Temperature regulation: The temperature of
the animals should be between a specific range.
Digestion: Water also serves for the lining to the
acid in the stomach.
WATER FOR THE ANIMALS

Water cycle consist in this three process:
• Evaporation: from oceans and other water bodies into
the air and transpiration from land plants and animals
into air.
• Precipitation: from water vapor condensing from the air
and falling to earth or ocean.
• Runoff: from the land usually reaching the sea.
Water cycle:

• Ways people waste water: (How to save it).
 Dishwasher -Dishwashers can waste so much water if you run it when it
is not full. A way to prevent this is to wash your dishes without use of
the dishwasher.
 Brushing Teeth / Washing Dishes WITH the Water Running- DO NOT
keep water running while brushing your teeth/ doing the dishes. When
you brush your teeth, wet the toothbrush first and turn the water off.
 Shaving - When you taking the shower, do you really need the water
running? Turn off the water while you shave your legs

Bath time! Bath time is no longer Fun time. It wastes an unnecessary
amount of water. an average shower uses 1/5 the amount of water that is
needed for a bath!
Using the Toilet as a Garbage Can- Do Not Do This! Throw out everything
in a garbage can, even if it is tempting to just throw it in the toilet.

Soil is a mixture of minerals, organic matter, gases,
liquids, and countless organisms that together
support life on Earth.
SOIL

1. Plants grow in and on soil.
2. Plants support animal life.
3. Plants and animals support human life.
4. World population is rapidly increasing, which
increases the need for food.
5. A large part of the world’s population has
inadequate nutrition.
Why Soils Are Important ?

For soil, the two main physical properties
are color and texture.
Color tells us something about the plant nutrients that
are found in the soil.
Texture determined by the size of particles in the soil,
affects the soil’s ability to hold water and thereby
sustain plant growth

Soil Color
The most obvious property when looking at soil is its
color
Geologist officially recognize over 170 different soil
colors.
But the most common color of soils are shades of
black, brown, red and gray.
Red soil

BLACK SOIL Also known as Regur or Black Cotton
soil. Dark grey to Black in color. High clay content.
Highly moist retentive. Develops cracks in summer.
Covers 5.4 lakh sq. km. Highly suitable for cotton.
Rich in iron, lime, calcium,Magnesium,carbonates,
and alumina.

RED SOIL Formed due to weathering of old crystalline rocks.
More sandy and less clayey. Rich in iron, small amount of
Humus. Poor in phosphorus, nitrogen and lime. Slightly acidic
and do not retain moisture. 3.5 lakhs sq.km area. Porous and
Friable.

BROWN SOIL Latin word meaning brick. Formed
under high temperature and rainfall with wet and
dry spell. Silica is leached due to high rainfall.
Remnants of iron and aluminum oxides left behind is
know as Laterite. Brown to Yellowish color. Becomes
hard when exposed to atmosphere. Used as building
material.

DESERT SOIL Contains soluble salts. Originated by
Mechanical disintegration & wind deposit. Porous
and coarse. 90% sand & 5% clay. Rich in Nitrates &
Phosphates. Poor in Nitrogen & Humus. Friable,
sandy & low moist content. 1.4 Lakh sqkm.

SALINE & ALKALINE SOIL Contains salts like Sodium,
Magnesium, Calcium. Infertile, unfit for cultivation.
Sandy to loamy in texture. Areas: Parts of Gujarat,
Rajasthan, Punjab, Haryana, U.P & Maharashtra.

Soil texture however, not color, is the
singlemost important physical property of
the soil. Knowing the soil texture alone
will provide information about:
• 1) how easily water flows through it
• 2) its water holding capacity
• 3) how well plants will grow in it

Components of environment

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Components of environment