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Environment

Description: Environment (D)
Number of Questions: 15
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Tags: Environment (D) Environment Biology
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The much used phrase 'Sustainable Development' came out from the

  1. Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED)

  2. World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED)

  3. World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD)

  4. Johannesburg Declaration


Correct Option: B
Explanation:

Formally known as the World Commission on Environment and Development (WCED), the Brundtland Commission's mission is to unite countries to pursue sustainable development together. The Chairman of the Commission was Gro Harlem Brundtland. The Commission aims to create a united international community with shared sustainability goals by identifying sustainability problems worldwide, raising awareness about them, and suggesting the implementation of solutions. In 1987, the Brundtland Commission published the first volume of “Our Common Future,” the organization's main report, which strongly influenced the Earth Summit in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in 1992 and the third UN Conference on Environment and Development in Johannesburg, South Africa in 2002.

Which of the following statements is/are correct?

  1. The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is an international agency of the UN that coordinates United Nations environmental activities.
  2. It is headquartered at Vienna.
  1. Only 1

  2. Only 2

  3. Both of these

  4. Neither of these


Correct Option: D
Explanation:

Statement 1 is wrong: The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is an international institution (a programme, rather than an agency of the UN) that coordinates United Nations environmental activities, assisting developing countries in implementing environmentally sound policies and practices. Statement 2 is also wrong: It was founded as a result of the United Nations Conference on the Human Environment in June 1972 and has its headquarters in the Gigiri neighborhood of Nairobi, Kenya. UNEP also has six regional offices and various country offices.

In the IUCN Red Data List of Threatened Species, the word “Threatened” deals with

  1. Vulnerable species
  2. Endangered species
  3. Near threatened species
  4. Extinct species
  5. Critically endangered species
  1. only 1, 2 and 5

  2. only 1, 2, 3 and 5

  3. only 2, 3 and 5

  4. all of the above


Correct Option: A
Explanation:

The International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) is the foremost authority on threatened species, and treats threatened species not as a single category, but as a group of three categories, depending on the degree to which they are threatened:

Vulnerable species

Endangered species
Critically endangered species “Threatened” and “Extinct” are two completely different terms. Hence, option 4 is deleted. Considering this difference, you might have marked option 2 as the right answer.

Which of the given statements is/are true?

  1. Greenpeace is an important environmental body of the UN with its main office in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. 2. The World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) is a fund for environmental protection created & maintained by the Greenpeace.
  1. Only 1

  2. Only 2

  3. Both of these

  4. Neither of these


Correct Option: D
Explanation:

Statement 1 is wrong: Greenpeace is a non-governmental environmental organization with offices in over forty countries and with an international coordinating body in Amsterdam, the Netherlands. Statement 2 is also wrong as the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) is not a fund but an international non-governmental organization working on issues regarding the conservation, research and restoration of the environment, formerly named the World Wildlife Fund, which remains its official name in Canada and the United States. It is the world's largest independent conservation organization. It has nothing to do with Greenpeace.

Which of the following situations are noticed in case of Eutrophication?

  1. Great increase of phytoplankton
  2. Great decrease of phytoplankton
  3. Depletion of oxygen in the water
  4. Accretion of oxygen in the water
  1. 1 & 3

  2. 1 & 4

  3. 2 & 3

  4. 2 & 4


Correct Option: A
Explanation:

Eutrophication is the ecosystem response to the addition of artificial or natural substances, such as nitrates and phosphates, through fertilizers or sewage, to an aquatic system. One example is the "bloom" or great increase of phytoplankton in a water body as a response to increased levels of nutrients. Negative environmental effects include hypoxia, the depletion of oxygen in the water, which induces reductions in specific fish and other animal populations.

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) was first established in 1988 under the aegis of which of the following?

  1. World Meteorological Organization
  2. UNEP
  3. UNFCCC
  4. UNGA
  1. Only 1 & 2

  2. Only 2

  3. Only 1, 2 & 3

  4. Only 2, 3 & 4


Correct Option: A
Explanation:

The Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change (IPCC) is a scientific intergovernmental body initially set up in 1988 by two United Nations organizations, the World Meteorological Organization (WMO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP), and later endorsed by the United Nations General Assembly (UNGA). The United Nations Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC or FCCC) is an international environmental treaty, not an organization. To eliminate this choice, a student needs to be acquainted with its full-form.

Consider the following statements about the Man & Biosphere (MAB) Programme:

  1. Launched in the early 1970s, the MAB Programme proposes an interdisciplinary research agenda and capacity building that target the ecological, social and economic dimensions of biodiversity loss and the reduction of this loss.
  2. It is an Intergovernmental Scientific Programme running under the aegis of the IUCN.

Which of the given statements is/are incorrect?

  1. Only 1

  2. Only 2

  3. Both of these

  4. Neither of these


Correct Option: B
Explanation:

Statement 1 is correct: The Man and the Biosphere (MAB) Programme is an Intergovernmental Scientific Programme aiming to set a scientific basis for the improvement of the relationships between people and their environment globally. IT was launched in 1970s. Statement 2 is wrong: The MAB programme is being run under the aegis of UNESCO.

The Cartagena Protocol seeks to protect/prevent

  1. coral bleaching due to oil spillages

  2. biological diversity from genetically modified organism

  3. ozone depletion due to excessive atmospheric pollution

  4. nuclear and radiation accidents


Correct Option: B
Explanation:

The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety is an international agreement on biosafety, as a supplement to the Convention on Biological Diversity. The Biosafety Protocol seeks to protect biological diversity from the potential risks posed by genetically modified organisms resulting from modern biotechnology. The Protocol entered into force on 11 September 2003.

Consider the following statements:

  1. Genetically modified crops are plants, the DNA of which has been modified using genetic engineering techniques.
  2. Genetically modified crops are also known as biotech crops.
  3. Genetic engineering techniques are much more precise than mutagenesis.

Which of the statements given is/are true?

  1. Only 1 & 2

  2. Only 1 & 3

  3. Only 1

  4. 1, 2 & 3


Correct Option: D
Explanation:

Genetically modified crops (GM crops, or biotech crops) are plants, the DNA of which has been modified using genetic engineering techniques, to resist pests and agents causing harm to plants and to improve the growth of these plants to assist in farmer's efficiency. Genetic engineering techniques are much more precise than mutagenesis (mutation breeding) where an organism is exposed to radiation or chemicals to create a non-specific but stable change.

Arrange the following regions in decreasing order of the number of Biosphere Reserves they have.

  1. Europe & North America, Asia & the Pacific, Africa

  2. Africa, Europe & North America, Asia & the Pacific

  3. Africa, Asia & the Pacific, Europe & North America

  4. Asia & the Pacific, Africa, Europe & North America


Correct Option: A
Explanation:
UNESCO Region Number of
Biosphere Reserves Number of
Countries
Africa 74 33
Arab States 26 11
Asia and the Pacific 107 28
Europe and North America 261 33
Latin America and the Caribbean 109 20

Consider the following statements.

  1. It is an international non-governmental organization working on issues regarding the conservation, research and restoration of the environment.
  2. It is the world's largest independent conservation organization with over 5 million supporters worldwide, working in more than 100 countries.
  3. Its logo is 'panda'.

The given statements hold true for:

  1. National Geographic Society

  2. United Nations Environment Programme

  3. World Wide Fund for Nature

  4. Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund


Correct Option: C
Explanation:

Critical Ecosystem Partnership Fund (CEPF) is a global program that provides funding and technical assistance to nongovernmental organizations and participation to protect the Earth's richest regions of plant and animal diversity, while World Wide Fund for Nature is an international non-governmental organization.

          The United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) is an international institution (a programme, rather than an agency of the UN) that coordinates United Nations environmental activities, assisting developing countries in implementing environmentally sound policies and practices.

These days, very often we hear the term 'Biodiversity Hotspot'. Which of the following requirements does a place need to qualify as a biodiversity hotspot?

  1. It must contain at least 0.5% or 1,500 species of vascular plants as endemics.
  2. It has to have lost at least 50% of its primary vegetation.

Choose the correct option:

  1. Only 1

  2. Only 2

  3. Both 1 & 2

  4. Neither 1 nor 2


Correct Option: A
Explanation:

A biodiversity hotspot is a region with a significant reservoir of biodiversity that is under threat from humans.

The concept of biodiversity hotspots was coined by Norman Myers.
To qualify as a biodiversity hotspot, a region must meet two strict criteria:
1) it must contain at least 0.5% or 1,500 species of vascular plants as endemics, and 2) it has to have lost at least 70% of its primary vegetation.

One of the outcomes of the Rio Summit, 1992 was Agenda 21. What does '21' stand for?

  1. 21st Century

  2. Number of goals

  3. Number of signatories

  4. Period of years for its implementation


Correct Option: A
Explanation:

Agenda 21 is a non-binding, voluntarily implemented action plan of the United Nations with regard to sustainable development. It is a product of the UN Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) held in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, in 1992. The "21" in Agenda 21 refers to the 21st century.

Which of the following correctly represents the order of food chain?

  1. Salmon, Fish, Brown Bear, Bacteria & Fungi

  2. Bacteria & Fungi, Fish, Salmon, Brown Bear

  3. Fish, Salmon, Brown Bear, Bacteria & Fungi

  4. Fish, Salmon, Bacteria & Fungi, Brown Bear


Correct Option: C
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