Environment & Biodiversity MCQs

Notes:
Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) are nontoxic, non-flammable chemicals containing atoms of carbon, chlorine, and fluorine. They are used in the manufacture of aerosol sprays, blowing agents for foams and packing materials, as solvents, and as refrigerants. Because CFCs contribute to?ozone?depletion in the upper atmosphere, the manufacture of such compounds has been phased out under the Montreal Protocol.

Notes:
PPM is an abbreviation of Parts Per Million. It is commonly used as a measure of small levels of pollutants in air, water, body fluids, etc. Parts per million is the mass ratio between the pollutant component and the solution.

Notes:
As non-biodegradable wastes like plastic bags, glass bottles, etc., cannot be broken down by decomposers, their disposal poses a big problem. Non-biodegradable wastes can be managed by practicing the concept of 3R— Reduce, Reuse, and Recycle.

Notes:
Lichens are actually two types of organisms living together, a fungus and an alga. The fungus makes the body that protects the alga and the alga provides the food for the fungus. Lichens can be used as air pollution indicators, especially of the concentration of Sulphur dioxide in the atmosphere.

Notes:
The Keibul Lamjao National Park is a national park in the Bishnupur district of the state of Manipur in India. It is 40 km2 (15.4 sq mi) in area, the only floating park in the world, located in North East India, and an integral part of Loktak Lake. It was created in 1966 as a wildlife sanctuary to preserve the natural habitat of the endangered Eld’s deer. In 1977, it was gazetted as national park.

Notes:
Loktak lake is located near Moirang in Manipur. It is the largest freshwater lake in North -East India. It is famous for the phumdis floating over it. Keibul Lamjao, the only floating national park in the world, floats over the Loktak Lake.

Notes:
Sikkim is the largest producer of orchids in India. The state is home to an amazing 450 species of exotic orchids alone. Annually, around 20 million stalks of orchids are produced in Sikkim. Sikkim, owing to its climatic conditions, has developed as a natural hub of orchids.

Notes:
Thalweg Doctrine is a part of international law that aims to resolve water boundary disputes. The doctrine states that the boundary between two states divided by a flowing body of water may be drawn along the thalweg, which is the line of the greatest depth of the channel. The boundary would follow the center of the principal navigable channel of the waterway.

The Thalweg Doctrine has been used in several disputes, including:

1. The Shatt al-Arab between Iraq and Iran
2. The Danube in central Europe (Croatia–Serbia border dispute)
3. The Kasikili/Sedudu Island dispute between Namibia and Botswana
4. The 2004 dispute settlement under the UN Law of the Sea

The Thalweg Doctrine has also been used in the Sir Creek dispute between India and Pakistan. The dispute is not settled yet due to a lack of trust.

Notes:
By volume, dry air contains 78.09% nitrogen, 20.95% oxygen, 0.93% Argon, 0.04% carbon dioxide and small amount of other gases. Air also contains variable amount of water vapour, on average around 1% at sealevel and 0.4% over the entire atmosphere.

Notes:

• The Asian Waterbird Census is conducted in January each year and is coordinated by the Wetlands International South Asia and the Bombay Natural History Society in india.
• It is an integral part of the global waterbird monitoring programme, the International Waterbird Census (IWC), coordinated by Wetlands International.
• It was initiated in 1987 in the Indian subcontinent and since has grown rapidly to cover major region of Asia.
• It is the longest-running citizen science initiative.
• Under this initiative, systematic counting and monitoring of waterbirds is undertaken to study trends and condition of wetlands, covering hundreds of sites.