EFFORTS MADE BY MAN FOR THE DEVELOPMENT OF BIODIVERSITY

THE GROWING NEEDS OF THE EXPANDING POPULATION OF THE WORLD, FOR MORE FOOD AND RAW MATERIALS HAVE MOTIVATED MAN TO SEARCH FOR WAYS AND MEANS TO TAP VARIOUS SOURCES TO ENSURE A STEADY  SUPPLY OF FOOD AND OTHER RESOURCES. OLD TECHNOLOGIES LIKE FERMENTATION, PLANT, BREEDING, ETC., IS GIVING WAY TO MODERN TECHNOLOGIES LIKE BIOTECHNOLOGY, TISSUE CULTURE,ETC. THE APPLICATION OF SCIENTIFIC AND ENGINEERING PRINCIPLES IN PROCESSING OF MATERIALS BY BIOLOGICAL AGENTS TO PROVIDE GOODS AND SERVICES IS A BROAD CONCERN OF BIOTECHNOLOGY.

PLANT BREEDING AND CROP IMPROVEMENT DEVELOPMENT OF NEW VARIETIES OF CROPS INCLUDES CREATION OF GENETIC VARIATION BY COMBINING DESIRABLE CHARACTERISTICS IN ONE PLANT AND THEN MULTIPLYING IT. THE PLANT BREEDER MAKES A SELECTION OF PLANTS WITH DESIRABLE CHARACTERISTICS, CROSSES THEM AND THEN IDENTIFIES THE OFFSPRING THAT COMBINE THE ATTRIBUTES OF BOTH PARENTS. THE PROGENY IS THEN MULTIPLIED TO BE SUPPLIED TO FARMERS, GROWERS AND PLANTERS. CROP IMPROVEMENT IS ACHIEVED THROUGH SUPERIOR HEREDITY.CREATION OF GENETIC VARIATION CAN BE DONE THROUGH THE FOLLOWING METHODS.

• SELECTION  : - THE DIFFERENTIAL REPRODUCTION OF INDIVIDUALS IN A POPULATION .
• HYBRIDIZATION : - THE CROSSING OF TWO VARIETIES SPECIES OR GENERA HAVING DESIRED GENES AND BRINGING TOGETHER THE USEFUL CHARACTERS OF THESE INTO ONE PROGENY, THE HYBRID. BOTANISTS GENERALLY USED THE TERM HYBRID TO SPECIALLY REFER TO CROSSES MADE BETWEEN SPECIES BUT GENETICISTS USE THE TERM TO REFER TO INDIVIDUALS THAT ARE HETEROZYGOUS EVEN FOR A SINGLE.
• POLYPLOID BREEDING : - IT OCCURS IN ORGANISMS WHEN THE NUMBER OF COMPLETE CHROMOSOME SETS IS HIGHER THAN TWO.POLYPLOIDY IN SEXUALLY REPRODUCING ORGANISMS MAY ARISE BY THE FERTILIZATION OF AN EGG BY MORE THAN ONE SPERM.
• INDUCED MUTATIONS : - GENE AND CHROMOSOME MUTATIONS MAY BE INDUCED BY SEVERAL MUTAGENS, WHICH ARE ALL FORMS OF ENERGY THAT DISRUPT THE CHEMICAL STRUCTURE  OF CHROMOSOMES, EXAMPLE X-RAYS, UV RAYS, GAMMA  RAYS AND COSMIC RAYS.
• TISSUE CULTURE : - THE ABILITY TO INDUCE MORPHOGENESIS AND REGENERATE WHOLE PLANTS BY CULTURING A FEW CELLS OR TISSUES.
• GENETIC ENGINEERING : - IT COMPRISES POWERFUL TECHNIQUES WHICH THEORETICALLY  ALLOW ANY GENE TO MOVE FROM ONE ORGANISM TO ANOTHER. RECOMBINANT DNA HAS THE POTENTIAL TO TRANSFORM THE GENES INTO A GLOBAL RESOURCES THAT CAN BE USED TO SHAPE NORMAL LIFE FORMS.

 THE GENETIC ENGINEERING IS PROMOTING A TECHNO-CENTRIC VERSION OF SUSTAINABLE AGRICULTURE WITH INCREASED PRODUCTIVITIES ACHIEVED THROUGH IMPROVED VARIETIES, AS WELL AS DECREASED INPUT COSTS AND DECLINING ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS.

LATHROUGH VARIOUS MODERN TECHNIQUES, TODAY THE FARMERS CAN PRODUCE LARGER YIELDS THAT COULD GO A LONG WAY IN MEETING GLOBAL FOOD REQUIREMENTS. PEST RESISTANT VARIETIES OF CROPS WILL PROMISE SUSTAINED PRODUCTIVITY. THE QUALITY OF CROPS CAN BE INCREASED IN POOR SOILS BY USING MYCORRHIZAL FUNGI  THAT ENHANCE MINERAL ABSORPTION BY PLANTS. INTRODUCTION OF QUICK-GROWING VARIETIES OF CROPS HAS NOT ONLY INCREASED PRODUCTION OF CROPS BUT HAS MADE THEM LESS PRONE TO DISEASE AND DAMAGE FROM ENVIRONMENTAL CAUSES. BIOTECHNOLOGY MIGHT HELP COUNTRIES IN DEVELOPING HIGHER YIELDING CROPS THAT ARE ADAPTED TO VARIOUS FARMING CONDITIONS AND ENVIRONMENTS. DROUGHT RESISTANT VARIETIES WILL REDUCE PRESSURE ON SCARCE WATER SUPPLIES. GENETIC MODIFICATION IN PNT CROPS HAS HELPED IN ACHIEVING HIGHER YIELDS AND BETTER QUALITY OF FRUITS AND VEGETABLES WITH ENHANCED NUTRITIONAL VALUE , THAT STAY NOT ONLY FRESH FOR LONGER PERIODS BUT TASTE BETTER THROUGH AGRI-HORTICULTURE AND AGRO-BOTANICAL PRACTICES. TODAY OIL CROPS HAVE AN INCREASED IN MONOUNSATURATED AND POLYUNSATURATED FATS FOR BETTER HEALTH IN HUMAN CONSUMPTION.

ADVANCEMENT IN BIOTECHNOLOGY CAN ALSO HELP IN IMPROVING THE QUALITY OF ANIMAL FEED IN ORDER TO IMPROVE THEIR NUTRITION. IT CAN ENSURE BETTER INDUSTRIAL RAW MATERIALS WHICH WILL BE MORE ECO-FRIENDLY AND SAVE THE EARTH FROM HARMFUL ENVIRONMENTAL DEGRADATION AND POLLUTION , SUCH AS USE OF BIODEGRADABLE PLASTICS MADE FROM PLANT STARCHES. DEPENDENCE ON PETROLEUM BY-PRODUCTS CAN BE REDUCED BY USING OILSEED CROPS WHICH COULD PROVIDE NECESSARY RAW MATERIALS FOR THE MANUFACTURE OF VARIOUS PRODUCTS LIKE LUBRICANTS, POLYMERS, LINKS, COSMETICS AND PHARMACEUTICALS.

PLANT AND ANIMAL DIVERSITY FOR HUMAN SUSTENANCE

CIVILIZATION TOOK ITS  BIRTH WHEN MAN DISCOVERED  FIRE ALONG WITH HIS ENDEAVOUR TO CULTIVATE CROPS AND TO DOESTICATE ANIMALS FOR AN ASSURED SUSTENANCE. THE GRADUAL DEVELOPMENT OF MAN'S CIVILIZATION CAN BE TRACED TO THE MANAGEMENT OF ASSURED FOOD. SUPPLY BY DELIBERATE PLANTING OF CROPS AND BY HARVESTING AND STORING THE PRODUCE . THE PRESENT DAY CEREALS, GRAINS, LEGUMES(PULSES) OR OILSEED CROPS ARE MAINLY RAISED FOR A SINGLE PURPOSE, THAT IS FOOD. HOWEVER, EARLY HUMANS GREATLY VALUED PLANTS WITH MULTIPLE USES SUCH AS, COCONUT PALM, DATE PALM, BAOBAB, MULBERRY, AGAVES, AND HEMP. THE COCONUT PALM STILL SUPPORTS PEOPLE LIVING IN COASTAL AREAS DUE TO ITS MULTIPLE PURPOSES.

AGRICULTURE ORIGINATED SOME 7,000 TO 13,000 YEARS AGO,SOMEWHERE IN THE INDUS, TIGRIS AND EUPHRATES AND THE NILE RIVER VALLEYS. THE YELLOW RIVER BASIN OF MODERN CHINA AND THE TEHUACAN VALLEY IN MODERN MEXICO ARE THE OTHER PREHISTORIC SITES OF ANCIENT AGRICULTURAL ACTIVITY. ALL EARLY CIVILIZATIONS WHOSE DIETS ARE  KNOWN TO US WERE BASED ON SEED PRODUCTION PLANTS SUCH AS WHEAT, MAIZE AND RICE. NEARLY ALL THE PRESENT DAY CROP PLANTS WERE DEVELOPED IN PREHISTORIC TIMES. WILD SPECIES OF PLANTS WERE CULTIVATED, DOMESTICATED AND SELECTIVE PRODUCTION OF THESE SPECIES WAS MADE. THERE ARE OVER 3,000 SPECIES OF FOOD PLANTS KNOWN TO US, OUT OF WHICH ONLY 150 ARE COMMERCIALIZED OR THAT ONLY LESS THAN 20 SPECIES PRODUCE 85 PERCENT OF THE FOOD OUTPUT. DIFFERENT PARTS OF A PLANT ARE USED IN DIFFERENT WAYS AS FOOD. IN GENERAL, THE SEEDS AND FRUITS ARE THE MOST NUTRITIOUS PARTS BUT THE LEAVES STEMS AND ROOTS OF SOME PLANTS ARE ALSO EATEN.

ARCHAEOLOGICAL EVIDENCE REVEALS THAT CEREALS ORIGINATED IN THE MOUNTANIOUS REGIONS OF ASIA, EUROPE, AFRICA AND SOUTH AMERICA. CEREALS, THE GRAIN PRODUCING PLANTS, ARE THE MOST IMPORTANT COMPONENTS OF OUR DIET. THE TRUE CEREALS ARE ALL MEMBERS OF THE GRASS FAMILY. WITHOUT THESE ESSENTIAL CROPS IT WOULD BE DIFFICULT TO FEED THE WORLD. WHEAT, CORN AND RICE MAKE UP TWO THIRDS OF THE CARBOHYDRATES WE CONSUME. OTHER CEREALS INCLUDE RYE, OATS, BARELY, SORGHUM, MILLETS.

FROM THE EARLIEST OF TIMES CERTAIN PLANTS HAVE PROVIDED OIL FOR COOKING AND LIGHTING. TODAY A WIDE RANGE OF CROPS ARE GROW N FOR THEIR OIL SUCH AS SOYABEANS, COCONUT SEED, PEANUT, SUNFLOWER, MUSTARD, GRAPE SEED, SESAME, SAFFLOWER AND OIL PALM AND WIDELY USED. THE COMMERCIAL FARMING OF OIL PRODUCING PLANTS RECEIVED A TREMENDOUS BOOST WITH THE INVENTION OF MARGARINE, TOWARDS THE END OF THE 19th CENTURY. DURING THE LAST TWENTY YEARS, VEGETABLE OILS HAVE RECEIVED FURTHER BOOST AS WE BECOME MORE CONSCIOUS OF MAINTAINING OUR HEALTH. IN TROPICAL REGIONS OF AFRICA AND ASIA, ESPECIALLY IN INDONESIA AND MALAYSIA, OIL PALM IS WIDELY CULTIVATED FOR COOKING OIL. THE MEDITERRANEAN REGIONS ARE THE MAIN PRODUCERS OF OLIVE OIL.

ONLY A FEW SELECTED SPECIES OF ANIMALS ARE IMPORTANT IN TERMS OF ANIMALS ARE IMPORTANT IN TERMS OF AGRICULTURE. CATTLE PROVIDE US WITH MORE THAN EIGHT TIMES AS MUCH FOOD IN THE FORM OF MILK THAN IN THE FORM OF MEAT. PIGS ARE THE MOST EFFICIENT MEAT BREEDERS. SHEEP AND GOATS ARE THE MOST VERSATILE LIVESTOCK, PROVIDING MEAT, MILK AND WOOL. POULTRY HAS LONG BEEN A SOURCE OF MEAT AND EGGS. IN TERMS OF INCREASING PRODUCTIVITY, CHICKEN IS THE FASTEST GROWING FOODSTUFF IN THE WORLD AND DOMINATES THE WORLD'S POULTRY POPULATION; 98 PERCENT OF ALL FARMED BIRDS ARE CHICKEN.

FISH REPRESENTS THE ONLY SIGNIFICANT SOURCE OF HUMAN FOOD THAT STILL RELIES ON NATURAL FOOD CHAINS. OUR ATTITUDE TO THE SEA IS STILL THAT OF A HUNTER-GATHERER. MODERN FISHING METHODS ARE EXTREMELY EFFICIENT AND OVER FISHING IS NOW THE INDUSTRIES GREATEST PROBLEM. MOST OF THE FISH WE EAT STAND FAIRLY HIGH IN THE IN THE OCEANS FOOD CHAINS. THEY OCCUR IN THE GREATEST NUMBERS IN THE COASTAL WATER WHICH IS WARM AND HENCE PLANT LIFE IS MOST ABUNDANT. THIS AREA ALSO ACCUMULATES RUN-OFF OF NUTRIENTS FROM THE LAND.

FRUITS AND VEGETABLES NOT ONLY PROVIDE VARIETY TO OUR DIET BUT ABOUND IN VITAMINS AND MINERALS. SOME FRUITS ARE GROWN FOR SUBSISTENCE, SOME AS STAPLE CROPS LIKE, POTATOES AND CASSAVA, WHILE PINNAPLES AND BANANAS ARE GROWN AS CASH  CROPS AND TURNIPS AS WINTER FEED LIVESTOCK. THE MOST USEFUL VEGETABLES ARE PULSES, ALSO KNOWN AS LEGUMES. THIS IS A GROUP OF PLANTS THAT INCLUDES PEAS, BEANS, LENTILS AND SOYABEANS. THEY PROVIDE MUCH MORE PROTEIN THAN CEREALS AND THEY ALSO PUT BACK NUTRIENTS INTO THE SOIL. FUTURE ADVANCES WILL PROBABLY INVOLVE MAKING USE OF NEW CROPS. THESE INCLUDE THE WINGED BEAN, OF WHICH ALL PARTS CAN BE EATEN. SUGARCANE WAS INTRODUCED INTO AMERICA 300 YEARS AGO AND PRIOR TO THAT HONEY WAS THE MAJOR SOURCE OF SUGAR AND BEES WERE WIDELY KEPT. 66 PER CENT OF THE WORLD'S SUGAR COMES FROM  CANE, THOUGH SUGAR BEET IS ALSO VERY IMPORTANT ESPECIALLY IN EUROPE. BROWN SUGAR FROM DATE PALMS AND OTHER PALMS ARE USED FOR LOCAL CONSUMPTION.

 

BIODIVERSITY FOR SUSTENANCE OF MANKIND

FOR MILLIONS OF YEARS HUMANS HAVE DEPENDED ON BIOLOGICAL MATERIALS PLANTS, ANIMALS, AND MICRO-ORGANISMS, FOR FOOD, MEDICINES AND INDUSTRIAL  PRODUCTS.OVER THE YEARS, PARTICULARLY DURING THE LAST FEW DECADES, THIS IMPORTANT CAPITAL STOCK ON WHICH HUMAN LIFE DEPENDS HAS BEEN SUBJECTED TO IRREPLACABLE LOSS. IRONICALLY THESE LOSSES OCCURED, UNNOTICED AND UNAPPRECIATED, BY THE VERY DEVELOPMENT AND PROGRESS THAT SOCIETIES ACHIEVED. BIOLOGICAL MATERIALS CAN REPRODUCE, UNLIKE OTHER RESOURCES,BUT WHAT CANNOT BE EASILY REPRODUCED IS THE VARIETY OF LIFE FORMS WHICH ORIGINATE AND ARE SUSTAINED BY A PROCESS OF NATURAL AND SOCIAL SELECTION, AND THEIR INTER-RELATIONSHIPS.

BIODIVERSITY IS ESSENTIAL FOR HUMAN SELF INTEREST, AS HIS OWN SUSTENANCE IS INVOLVED. IT SUSTAINS MAN, BECAUSE ECOSYSTEMS FUNCTION AS THE PLANETARY LIFE SUPPORT SYSTEM, RENEWING ATMOSPHERIC OXYGEN AND PLAYING A CENTRAL PART IN THE BIOCHEMICAL CYCLE. THEY ARE THE SOURCE OF FIBRE, FOOD, TIMBER, NATURAL DRUGS AND  OTHER PRODUCTS; THEY CONSERVE SOIL AND THEY SHELTER GENETIC STRAINS TO WHICH CROP BREEDERS CONTINUALLY RETURN IN ORDER TO IMPROVE CULTIVATED VARIETIES.

BIODIVERSITY IN ALL ITS FORMS AND ABUNDANCE PROVIDES FOR THE SUSTENANCE OF MANKIND, BUT, THIS IS NOT POSSIBLE WHEN THE ENVIRONMENT SUFFERS FROM VARIOUS KINDS OF POLLUTION AND DEGRADATION. THE OZONE DEPLETION HAS LED TO ENHANCED UV-B RADIATIONS WHICH NOT ONLY KILL SMALLER LIFE FORMS BUT ALSO AFFECT THE GENES OF PLANTS, ANIMALS AND MAN.

NEED TO UNDERSTAND THE BALANCE IN NATURE

UP TO THE ADVENT OF CIVILIZED MAN, THE BIOSPHERE OF THE WORLD CONSISTED OF A COMPLEX PATTERN OF BIOTIC COMMUNITIES RESPONSIVE TO A VARIETY OF ENVIRONMENTS. THE HARMONY PREVAILING BETWEEN THE BIOTIC AND PHYSICAL REALMS WAS THE RESULT OF HUNDREDS OF MILLIONS OF YEARS OF EVOLUTION AND ADJUSTMENT OF ONE ORGANISM TO ANOTHER AND OF EACH TO THE HABITAT  IN WHICH IT LIVED. THIS RELATIONSHIP WAS IMPERATIVE AN OCCASIONAL OUTBREAK OF A SPECIES AS A RESULT OF SOME TEMPORARY ADVANTAGE, OR A CATASTROPHE TO A POPULATION AS A RESULT OF CHANGE TO THE PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT WERE NORMALLY BROUGHT TO A BALANCE. PRIMITIVE MAN OCCUPIED A NICHE AND ASSUMED A ROLE COMPARABLE TO OTHER ANIMALS AND THE ECOSYSTEM MAINTAINED IN A HEALTHY CONDITION.

MODERN MAN, HOWEVER, HAS INITIATED A NUMBER OF ABRUPT CHANGES DURING THE LAST FEW CENTURIES BEYOND THE CAPACITY OF THE ECOSYSTEM TO ADJUST ITSELF  TO THESE FORM OF CHANGES. HE HAS BECOME THE DOMINANT ORGANISM, IN THE BIOSPHERE, FORCING  CHANGES TO FIT HIS NEEDS AND DESIRES, AND CREATING ECOSYSTEMS DIFFERENT THAN  ANY THAT HAVE EXISTED BEFORE. EMERGENCE OF NEW COMMUNITIES IS A CHARACTERISTIC OF THE GEOSPHERE, BUT THE REPLACEMENT OF THE BIOSPHERE BY AN ANTHROPOSPHERE IS UNIQUE IN THE SPEED AND EXTREME CHANGES PRODUCED. THIS ACQUISITION OF DOMINANCE IS THE RESULT OF THE EXTRAORDINARY EVALUATION IN MAN OF INTELLIGENCE, INGENUITY AND USE OF TOOLS. HE HAS GREATLY MODIFIED OR REPLACED THE NATURAL PROCESSES THAT CONTROL STABILITY AND BALANCE WITHIN THE ECOSYSTEM WITH NEW PROCESSES AND MANUFACTURED PRODUCTS WHICH THE ENVIRONMENT CANNOT ABSORB. AS A RESULT THERE IS A GREAT DETERIORATION IN THE QUALITY OF THE ENVIRONMENT AND A  POPULATION EXPLOSION  OF THE HUMAN SPECIES, AND A DISHARMONY IN THE WORLD ECOSYSTEMS WHICH CLEARLY INDICATES AN IMMINENT CATASTROPHE.

THE NEXT FEW DECADES WILL DECIDE WHETHER MAN WILL SURVIVE AS A DOMINANT ORGANISM OR BE REDUCED TO THE ROLE HE OCCUPIED AS A PRIMITIVE MAN OR HE MAY BECOME EXTINCT. THERE IS A CONFLICT BETWEEN THE DEMANDS OF MAN FOR EXPANDING POPULATION, PRODUCTIVITY, POWER AND PLEASURES AND THE FUNCTIONING OFF NATURAL LAWS FOR MAINTAINING STABILITY AND EQUILIBRIUM BETWEEN THE LIVING AND THE PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENT.

CONSERVATION OF AN ECOSYSTEM, VERY OFTEN MEANS ITS MAINTENANCE IN ITS NATURAL STATE. IN A NATURAL STATE, AN ECOSYSTEM HAS A BALANCED POPULATION OF PREDATORS AND PREY, DOMINANT AND SUB-DOMINANT SPECIES. EACH SPECIES IN SUCH AN ENVIRONMENT WILL COME TO TERMS WITH ALL THE OTHER SPECIES OF THE AREA. MANY OF THE ANIMAL AND BIRD SANCTUARIES ESTABLISHED IN SEVERAL PARTS OF OUR COUNTRY  AND THROUGH OUT THE WORLD AIM AT MAINTAINING THE ECOLOGICAL BALANCE. IN FACT, THERE IS NO BETTER METHOD OF CONSERVATION THAN LETTING THE ECOSYSTEM BE AS IT IS.

IMMEDIATE PROBLEMS OF CONCERNS IN THE PRESERVATION OF NATURAL ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY ARE THE ELIMINATION OF AIR, WATER, SOIL AND NOISE POLLUTION; THE DISPOSAL OF SOLID WASTES; AND CLIMATE MODIFICATON ON A GLOBAL SCALE. POLLUTION CAUSED BY MAN'S ACTIVITIES CHANGES THE NATURAL ENVIRONMENT AND ALTERS THE NORMAL FUNCTIONING OF AN ECOSYSTEM. IN ORDER TO ATTAIN STABILIZED AND BALANCED ECOSYSTEMS WORLDWIDE, HUMAN POPULATION HAS TO BE CONTROLLED AND REGULATED AND THE HABITAT OF THE COMMUNITIES OF PLANTS AND ANIMALS HAS TO BE CONSERVED. THE IMMEDIATE NEED IS TO FOCUS ATTENTION ON IMPLEMENTATION OF NECESSARY REMEDIAL MEASURES WHICH WILL INVOLVE INTEGRATED EFFORTS OF SCIENCE, TECHNOLOGY, LAW, SOCIOLOGY, POLITICS AND ECONOMICS.

DISTURBANCE OF BALANCE IN NATURE

ECOSYSTEMS IN THEIR NATURAL STATE CONSIST OF INTEGRATED AND LARGELY SELF-REGULATING COMMUNITIES OF ORGANISMS IN BALANCE WITH THEIR CHEMICAL AND PHYSICAL ENVIRONMENTS.ECOSYSTEM PROCESSES DOMINATE THE GLOBAL CYCLE OF OXYGEN, CARBON, NITROGEN, PHOSPHORUS, AND SULPHUR ELEMENTS THAT ARE ESSENTIAL TO LIFE. UNDER NATURAL CONDITIONS, CARBON AND NUTRIENTS ARE FIXED INTO LIVING BIOMASS. WHEN ECOSYSTEMS ARE PLACED UNDER STRESS, SUCH AS DRAINAGE, CULTIVATION, FIRE OR TIMBER HARVESTING THEY TEND TO SIMPLIFY, RELEASING CARBON AND NUTRIENTS CAUSING LOSS OF SPECIES. ALTERATION OF THE GLOBAL CARBON CYCLE DUE TO DEFORESTATION AND OTHER VEGETATION CHANGES MAY RESULT INTO GREENHOUSE EFFECT IN THE ATMOSPHERE AND GLOBAL WARMING.

WETLANDS SUCH AS RIVERS, LAKES, MARSHES, SWAMPS,SWAMP WOODLANDS, MANGROVES AND SHALLOW WATER ESTUARINE AND MARINE AREAS ARE AMONG THE MOST PRODUCTIVE HABITATS IN THE WORLD. THESE ECOSYSTEMS ARE THE PRIME TARGETS FOR HUMAN INTERFERENCE IN BUILDING RESERVOIRS AND HYDROELECTRIC DAMS, OR THEY ARE DRAINED FOR AGRICULTURAL ACTIVITIES AND FOR URBANIZATION OR FOR DEVELOPING HARBOURS AND MINING.

IN THE PHILIPPINES, MARI CULTURE WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR 80 PER CENT OF THE SUBSTANTIAL LOSS OF MANGROVES BETWEEN 1952 AND 1997;IN THAILAND THE MANGROVE AREA HAS DIMINISHED BY MORE THAN 40 PER CENT. IN OTHER PLACES CUTTING OF MANGROVE POLES AND RECLAMATION FOR URBAN OR INDUSTRIAL USES HAVE BEEN SIGNIFICANT. THE SUNDERBANS FOREST OF INDIA AND BANGLADESH ARE DECLINING DUE TO CONSTRUCTION OF IRRIGATION PROJECTS,BARRAGES AND OTHER USES OF THE FRESH WATERS OF GANGES. SIMILAR EXAMPLES IN MANY PARTS OF THE DEVELOPING WORLD HAS RESULTED IN SERIOUS CONSEQUENCES AS MANGROVE HABITATS PROTECT THE COASTS FROM STORM SURGES AND ARE ALSO MAJOR FISH NURSERIES.CLEAR FELLING ON A LARGE SCALE IS A MAJOR THREAT TO THE MANGROVES THROUGHOUT THE TROPICS. THIS BRINGS CONSEQUENCES RISK TO COASTLINES WHICH WILL BE AGGRAVATED IF SEA LEVEL RISES. DESPITE THE IMPORTANCE OF GOODS AND SERVICES WHICH WETLANDS PROVIDE THEY ARE CONSIDERED AS A HINDRANCE TO DEVELOPMENT. THEY LOST OR ALTERED BECAUSE OF THE DISRUPTION OF NATURAL PROCESS BY AGRICULTURAL INTESIFICATION , URBANIZATION, POLLUTION, DAM CONSTRUCTION, REGIONAL WATER TRANSFERS AND OTHER FORMS OF INTERVENTION IN THE ECOLOGICAL AND HYDROLOGICAL SYSTEM.

ENGINEERING THE LANDSCAPE HAS GREATLY DISRUPTED THE EARTH'S BALANCE. THE EARTH CONTAINS A HUGE RANGE OF MINERAL TREASURES SUCH AS COAL, OIL, URANIUM, IRON, ALUMINIUM ,RAW, MATERIALS FOR CONCRETE AND GLASS, ALL HAVE TO BE EXTRACTED FROM THE EARTH. MINING SPELLS DISASTER FOR THE SURROUNDING HABITAT, HUMANS AND MACHINES FELL TREES AND TEAR OPEN THE LAND USUALLY CAUSING LONG TERM DAMAGE. HUGE GAPING HOLES ARE DUG INTO THE GROUND' DISFIGURING THE LANDSCAPE FOR MANY YEARS. THE SURROUNDING AREA BECOMES DOTTED WITH UNSIGHTLY SLAG HEAPS, ARTIFICIAL HILLS MADE OF MUD AND CRUMBLING STONE.

IN SOUTH AND CENTRAL AMERICA THE RAIN FORESTS ARE BEING BURNED DOWN TO CREATE VAST CATTLE RANCHES. THIS IS GOING TO RESULT IN SOIL EROSION CAUSED BY HEAVY RAINS. EXPERTS BELIEVE THAT WITHIN 10 YEARS, NOT EVEN GRASS WILL GROW WHERE GIANT TREES ONCE STOOD. MANY SCIENTISTS FEAR THAT HUGE AREAS THAT HAVE ALREADY BEEN CLEARED WILL NEVER REGROW. THE AREA COULD BECOME A DESERT. THESE FORESTS CONTAIN HUGE MASSES OF PHOTOSYNTHETIC VEGETATION AND THEY RECYCLE THOUSANDS OF TONS OF CARBON DIOXIDE AND OXYGEN EVERY DAY. OVER 75 PER CENT OF THE RAIN THAT FALLS ON THESE FORESTS IS RETURNED TO THE ATMOSPHERE THROUGH EVAPO-TRANSPIRATION. PRESERVING THESE FORESTS IS NOT ONLY IMPORTANT FOR THE EARTH'S ECOLOGICAL BALANCE BUT ALSO FOR SAVING LIFE ON THE EARTH.

OVER FISHING AND EXCESSIVE HARVESTING OF WHALES, DOLPHINS, SEALS AND POLAR BEARS IS ONE OF THE CLEAREST EXAMPLES OF OVER-EXPLOITATION OF MARINE RESOURCES. MODERN FISHING METHODS ARE EXTREMELY EFFICIENT AND HARVESTING THE SEA IS NOW AS MECHANIZED AS HARVESTING THE LAND. THE CROP OF THE WILD FISHES IS ON THE DECLINE DUE TO OVER-FISHING, MOST OF THE FISH WE EAT  COMES FROM FISH FARMS. TRAWLING AND SEINING ARE TWO MOST IMPORTANT FISHING TECHNIQUES. FISH ARE PURSUED OFTEN BY MEANS OF ECHO-LOCATION EQUIPMENT. A TAWL NET MAY BE DRAWN BY ONE OR TWO SHIPS. SINCE . SINCE, BOTH PELAGIC AND DEMERSAL FISH ARE CAUGHT BY TRAWLERS HUGE QUANTITIES ARE HARVESTED. OVER-FISHING IS NOT ONLY ABOUT NUMBERS OF FISH BUT CATCHING TOO MANY SMALL(YOUNG) FISH CAUSES THE POPULATION AS A HOLE TO DECLINE THUS UPSETTING THE BALANCE.