Environment And Ecology Notes For UPSC

Environment & Ecology is one of the important subjects of civil services examination. Questions have been asked frequently from this section in both UPSC Prelims and Mains. Hence, it becomes important to catch hold of notes on important Environment topics for the IAS Exam.

 Environment and related topics are a part of both the UPSC Prelims Syllabus and the UPSC Mains Syllabus (GS III). At times, Environment related topics also come in the IAS Mains Essay paper.

This article will provide you with important articles and PDFs of UPSC notes on Environment and Ecology for the Civil Services Exam. which you can refer to for your preparation.

Important Environment & Ecology Notes for IAS Exam

Given below are some of the most important Environment & Ecology topics important for UPSC 2022.

Amazon Fund	PARIVESH	COP24	COP25
Green Crackers	South Asia Flash Flood Guidance System	Living Planet Report	Global Environment Outlook
Narmada Bachao Andolan	Project Sardar Sarovar Dam	National Monsoon Mission	List of Solar Power Parks in India
Eco Bridges in India	National Tiger Conservation Authority	Sweet Revolution in India	Dam Rehabilitation and Improvement Project
Ranthambore National Park	Asiatic Lion	Urban Flooding	Narmada Landscape Restoration Project
Biochar	Environment Performance Index	Gir National Park	World Biofuel Day
Bird Diverters	Sankalp Parv Tree Plantation	Asiatic Lion Reintroduction Project	One Sun One World One Grid
Tiger Census Report	World Water Day	Asian Waterbird Census	World Air Quality Report
Global Climate Risk Index	African Swine Fever Virus	Difference Between Asian Elephants and African Elephants	Asian Elephant Specialist Group
Caracal	Fishing Cat	Red Panda	Indian Crocodile
Olive Ridley Turtles	Species in News for UPSC	WHO WASH	Human-Wildlife Conflict
Energy Flow in Ecosystem	Ecosystem	Flooding in India	Nitrogen Cycle
Biodiversity	Biodiversity Hotspots in India	IUCN Red List	Conservation of Biodiversity
Importance of Biodiversity	Loss of Biodiversity	Causes of Loss of Biodiversity	Biosphere Reserves in India
Tiger Conservation of India	Wildlife Protection Act 1972	Climate Change in India	Alien Invasive Species
Paris Agreement	UNFCCC	Kyoto Protocol	Albedo of Earth
National Green Tribunal	Montreal Protocol	Kigali Agreement	Greenhouse Gases (GHGs)
Air Pollutants	Central Board	National Health Mission	National Action Plan on Climate Change
National Water Mission	National Mission for Sustaining Himalayan Ecosystem (NMSHE)	National Solar Mission	National Mission for Enhanced Energy Efficiency
National Mission on Sustainable Habitat	Green India Mission	Stubble Burning	Air Quality Index
International Environment Convention and Protocols	Smog	UNFCCC COP26	–

Focus areas in Environment & Ecology for UPSC prelims and IAS mains:

1. Environmental Ecology
2. Biodiversity
3. Climate Change
4. Institutions
5. Acts/Laws/Policies related to Environment

Preparing less concrete topics like above can pose a challenge to IAS aspirants. Ideally, the UPSC preparation strategy should comprise reading NCERTs and actively tracking current affairs. Also, going through the UPSC previous year question papers should be a part of the preparation.

These UPSC notes on Environment and related topics are prepared by subject matter experts keeping the Civil Services exam in mind. For a holistic approach to IAS preparation, check out the links at the bottom of the article.

Check the previous year’s Environment and Ecology Questions asked in UPSC Prelims in the linked article.

Environment and Ecology Notes PDF for UPSC Prelims exam and IAS Mains

The PDFs provided below will help for better preparation for both prelims and UPSC Mains.

Topics	PDF
Concept of System Understanding the Ecosystem Energy Cycle Important Terms	EE Notes-1
Biodiversity Genetic Diversity Species Diversity Ecosystem Diversity Value of Biodiversity List of modern drugs derived from Plant sources Endemic and Exotic species	EE Notes-2
Endemic Species and their regions Conservation of Biodiversity In-situ Ex-situ Constitutional Provisions Statutory Acts/Bodies International Conferences/Protocols Climate Change -a brief	EE Notes-3
Climate Change Implications for India Response to Climate Change National Action Plan on Climate Change Pollution Categories Causes Types of Particulates International Conventions	EE Notes 4

How to best use these Environment notes for UPSC preparation?

• Aspirants often have the Environment related relevant information but presenting all the information in the IAS exam becomes a challenge, especially in the UPSC mains.
• Make a habit of listing current affairs along with static parts of the UPSC notes.
• If one goes through the UPSC previous year question papers, one can see the nature of questions are changing. While the emphasis on basic concepts and static part is still there, the dynamic aspects are getting more weightage.

Few Environment questions from UPSC previous year question papers are given below.

Q.1 Consider the following pairs:

Terms sometimes seen in the news Their origin

1. Annexe- I Countries: Cartagena Protocol
2. Certified Emissions Reductions: Nagoya Protocol
3. Clean Development Mechanism: Kyoto Protocol

Which of the pairs given above is/are correctly matched?

1. 1 and 2 only
2. 2 and 3 only
3. 3 only
4. 1,2 and 3

Ans. C

Q 2 Which of the following best describes/describe the aim of ‘Green India Mission’ of the Government of India?

1. Incorporating environmental benefits and costs into the Union and State Budgets thereby implementing the ‘green accounting’
2. Launching the second green revolution to enhance agricultural output so as to ensure food security to one and all in the future
3. Restoring and enhancing forest cover responding to climate change by a combination of adaptation and mitigation measures

Select the correct answer using the code given below.

1. 1 only
2. 2 and 3 only
3. 3 only
4. 1,2 and 3

Ans. C

Q.3 What is/are the unique about the ‘Kharai Camel’ a breed found in India

1. It is capable of swimming up three kilometres in seawater
2. Its survives by grazing on mangroves
3. It lives in the wild and cannot be domesticated

Select the correct answers using the code given below

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2

Ans. A

Q.4 What is ‘greenhouse gas protocol ‘?

1. it is an international accounting tool for government and business leaders to understand, quantify and manage greenhouse gas emissions
2. it is an initiative of the united nations to offer financial incentives to developing countries to reduce greenhouse gas emissions and to adopt eco-friendly technologies
3. it is an inter-governmental agreement ratified by all the member countries of the united nations to reduce greenhouse gas emissions to specified levels by the year 2022
4. it is one of the multilateral REDD+ initiatives hosted by the world bank

Ans. A

Q.5 With reference to ‘Agenda 21’, sometimes seen in the news, consider the following statements:

1. It is a global action plan for sustainable development.
2. It originated in the World Summit on Sustainable Development held in Johannesburg in 2002.

Which of the statements given above is/are correct?

1. 1 only
2. 2 only
3. Both 1 and 2
4. Neither 1 nor 2

Ans. A

UPSC Preparation:

IAS Exam Pattern	IAS Prelims: UPSC MCQ On Environment
UPSC Mains GS 3 Strategy	Current Affairs Quiz
Complete List Of NCERT Books Needed For UPSC Preparation	Daily News Analysis
UPSC Syllabus	UPSC Calendar 2022
UPSC Prelims Exam: Environment and Ecology Books for IAS	IAS Topper
UPSC Previous Year Question Papers	NCERT Notes
Success Rate Of Different Optional Subjects In UPSC Mains	How To Read Yojana Magazine for IAS Preparation