COURSE
DEVELOPER AND THEIR
BACKGROUND
COURSE DESCRIPTION
COURSE OUTLINE
CHAPTER #
TITLE
NSTP 1-National Service Training Program
Ms. Blenda P. Balagso
Lecturer, Tarlac State University
National Service Training Program Office
bpbalagso@tsu.edu.ph
In accordance with the RA 9163, otherwise
known as the National Service Training Program Act of
2001, this course on National Service Training
Program 1 (NSTP 1) aims to enhance civic
consciousness and defense preparedness in the youth,
by developing the ethics of service and patriotism while
undergoing training in its program components.
It is divided into two modules: the Common
Module (25 hours) and the Specific Modules (29
hours). The total allotted time for the common modules
and specific modules would satisfy the required 54
minimum training hours for the NSTP 1.
Week 1: TSU Vision, Mission and Core Values, and
Introduction to the Course
Week 1-2: Common Module: Citizenship Training
Week 2-3: Common Module: Drug Education
Week 4-6: Common Module: Disaster Awareness,
Preparedness, and Management
Week 7: Common Module: Environmental Protection
Week 8: Common Module: Other National Security
Concerns
Week 9: Midterm Examination
Week 10: Specific Module: Self and Filipino Society
Week 11: Specific Module: Volunteerism
Week 12: Specific Module: Peace Education
Week 13-15: Specific Module: Dimensions of
Development/ Literacy and Numeracy Skills
Week 16-17: Specific Module: Introduction to
Community-Based Management
Week 18: Final Examination
04
ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
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RATIONALE
INSTRUCTION TO THE USERS
This is the fourth
chapter of NSTP 1National Service Training
Program. It centers on the
fundamental knowledge
on the facets and tenets in environmental protection and
management that the NSTP students are expected to
acquire and understand in order for them to apply such
understanding into real-life setting and turn as advocates
in protecting the environment. Further, this chapter is
divided into five sub-topics: (a) Environmental Protection
and Management Introduction; (b) Seven Principles of
Environment and Environmental Laws; (c) Forest
Protection, Conservation and Development; (d) Water
Sanitation and Conservation; and (e) The Role of Youth
in the Environmental Protection and Management.
The developer of this module on the Environmental
Protection aims to aid you in learning and
understanding the topics in this chapter. Through
this module, you can study and keep up with the
class discussions through flexible learning.
In this module, you will encounter the introductory
sections, pre-test, learning objectives, content
(discussion with activities), synthesis/generalization,
evaluation, assignment/agreement, and references.
You can review the chapter/module anytime, but the
activities should be answered or completed based
on the schedule and/or instructions provided by your
instructor. These activities are graded by the
instructor and should not be skipped as much as
possible.
If you have questions, feel free to contact the
instructor.
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PRE-TEST
Get a clean sheet of paper.
Without looking for them in a
dictionary, try to recall and
define the following terms,
which in one way or another,
may have been a part of your vocabulary:
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
8.
9.
10.
CONSERVATION
DEFORESTATION
EL NIÑO
ENVIRONMENT
GLOBAL WARMING
GREENHOUSE EFFECT
LA NIÑA
MURO-AMI
SOIL EROSION
WATER SANITATION
You may answer this for a maximum of 20
minutes. Once you are done with the pre-test, do not
throw away the output as you are expected to use that
as a reference in the discussion proper and should be
submitted to the instructor via e-mail or text message if
you do not have internet connection at home. You may
proceed to check the learning objectives for this chapter
if you are done with this section.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
At the end of this chapter, the student is expected
to:
Determine various environmental laws,
concepts, and principles related to
environmental protection and management;
Create an action plan that will address
environmental concerns particularly in their
home, school, and the community;
Participate and contribute in the vertical
gardening/planting activity;
Do an actual cleaning of esteros, corridors and
the like.
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CONTENT
PREPARATORY ACTIVITIES
Did you know that we eat
water? We do! Water is inside the
crops that we grow for food. What
happens if the water we use on our
crops is polluted? In this activity, you
will see how easily pollution can get
into our water, our food and us.
•
•
Vocabulary:
Pollution – the natural environment becoming
contaminated (made dirty) by things humans make
Time:
•
•
Set up: 15 minutes
Activity: 4 hours to overnight
You will need:
A glass
Tap water
Red or blue food coloring
A knife
A stick of fresh celery with the leaves still on it
Here’s what you will do:
Fill the glass with tap water.
Add two or three drops of food coloring. Notice
how it spreads through the water. Pollution
spreads through water just like the food
coloring does.
Wash the piece of celery. Leave the leaves on.
Being very careful, use the knife and cut off
the bottom of the celery.
Put the celery in the glass filled with colored
water.
Let the celery stalk sit there for at least three
or four hours; you can even leave it overnight.
When the time has passed, take the celery
stalk out of the water.
Use the knife and cut a slice off the bottom of
the stalk.
Do this several times.
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Questions to Answer:
1. How long did you leave the celery stalk in the
water?
2. Before you took the celery stalk out of the
water, what did it look like?
3. When you sliced off pieces from the celery
stalk, what did you find?
4. The food coloring is like pollution that gets into
the water. If the food coloring moved all the
way up into the celery stalk, what would
happen if there was pollution in the water
instead of food coloring?
5. What does this tell you about polluted water?
Document the process you went through by taking
photos or taking down notes in your notebook (if you do
not have camera), then write your insights or answers to
the provided questions in a short bond paper or a sheet
of yellow paper.
DEVELOPMENTAL ACTIVITIES
In this chapter, our focus is on the environmental protection. You may review your answers for
the pre-test while reading this section in order for you to determine if your definitions are correct.
A. ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AND MANAGEMENT INTRODUCTION
The study of environmental problems and their solutions has never been more important.
Modern society in 2009 is hooked on oil. Production has decreased while demand has
increased, and the population of the world has been increasing by more than 70 million
each year. The emerging energy crisis is producing an economic crisis as everything
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produced from oil increases in price beyond what some people can pay. Energy and
economic problems come as a time of unprecedented environmental concerns from the
local to global level.
At the beginning of the modern era in A.D., the number of people was probably about 100
million, one third of the population of the United States. in 1960, the world contained 3 billion
people. Our population has doubled in the last 40 years, to 6.8 billion people today. In the
United States, population increase is often apparent when we travel. Urban traffic snarls,
long lines to enter national parks, and hampered attempts to get tickets to popular
attractions are all symptoms of a growing population. If recent human population growth
rates continue, our numbers could reach 9.4 billion by 2050. The problem is that the Earth
has not grown any larger and the abundance of its resources has not increased. How, then,
can the Earth sustain all these people? And what is the maximum number of people that
could live on the Earth not just for a short time, but sustained over a long time?
THE IMPORTANCE OF TREES
Trees are as important as our lives. The leaves of a tree take up carbon dioxide from the
air and absorb sunlight. These, in combination with water transported from the roots,
provide the energy and chemical elements for leaves to carry out photosynthesis. Through
photosynthesis, the leaves convert carbon dioxide and water into simple sugar and
molecular oxygen. This simple sugar is then combined with other chemical elements to
provide all the compounds that the tree uses.
Tree roots take up water, along with chemical elements dissolved in the water and small
inorganic compounds, such as the nitrate or ammonia necessary to make proteins. Often,
the process of extracting minerals and compounds from the soil is aided by symbiotic
relationship between the tree roots and fungi. Tree roots release sugars and other
compounds that are food for the fungi, and the fungi benefit the tree as well. Leaves and
roots are connected by two transportation systems. Phloem, on the inside of the living part
of the bark, transports sugars and other organic molecules upward to the leaves. water is
transported upward by a sun-powered pump (Botkin & Keller, 2010).
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IT’S YOUR TURN! Plant the seeds or seedlings of any tree of your preference in our
own backyard or garden and make sure to document the progress by writing down your
observations in a journal or observation notes. This vertical tree planting and growing activity should
be well-documented. The narrative report with photos as proof of evidence shall be submitted to the
instructor on the announced schedule. If you do not have camera, observation notes may be
accepted as evidence and may be submitted through e-mail or text message.
PHILIPPINE AGENDA 21, THE KEY TO PHILIPPINES’ ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
Philippine Agenda 21 (PA 21) is a program of action into the 21st century for bringing the
Earth into a sustainable future. It was adopted by the participating governments of the world
in the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED), otherwise
known as the Earth Summit, in Rio de Janeiro, Brazil in June 1992. PA 21 is the Philippines’
commitment to the UNCED. It also lays down the mix of strategies that integrate areas (or
Action Agenda), from the national to the regional level, with the corresponding implementing
platforms and plans. It is basically made up of:
1. The Principles of Unity;
2. The Action Agenda; and
3. The Implementation Strategies.
THE VISION OF PHILIPPINE AGENDA 21
PA 21 envisions a better quality of life for all through the development of a just, moral,
creative, spiritual, economically-vibrant, caring, diverse yet cohesive society characterized
by appropriate productivity, participatory and democratic process and living in harmony
within the limits of the carrying capacity of nature and the integrity of creation.
SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT DEFINED
Sustainable development as defined in the PA 21 (1996) is “harmonious integration of a
sound and viable economy, responsible governance, social cohesion and ecological
integrity, to ensure that development is a life-sustaining process.”
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WHAT IS THE ENHANCED PA 21?
Ten years after the UNCED, world leaders gathered in Johannesburg, South Africa for the
World Summit on Sustainable Development (WSSD) to reinvigorate global commitment to
sustainable development. In line with the Johannesburg Summit, the PA 21 was updated
into the Enhanced PA 21, particularly noting that:
1. The rise of globalization and the creation of an external environment of
finance, markets, and technology did not seem conducive to sustainable
development.
2. The civil society needs to specify its commitments and contributions to
achieving sustainability in the updated document.
3. Government departments need to be imbued with the sustainable
development perspective with which to handle issues property (“The
Philippine Agenda 21”, 2014)
THE GOAL ELEMENTS OF THE ENHANCED PA 21
The Enhanced PA 21 has five goal elements, as follows:
1. Poverty Reduction. Poverty is a central concern of sustainable development.
Consistent with this, the various consultations for the updating of PA 21have
yielded poverty reduction agenda that includes measures to create an
enabling economic environment for sustained and broad-based growth;
improve employment, productivity and income; and attain food security.
2. Social Equity. Social equity should mean allocation of resources on the
bases of efficiency and equity to achieve balanced development. Efficiency
and equity mean the channeling of resources to developing areas where
greater economic benefits accumulate and where there is greater need,
distribution being dependent on the practicality and urgency of needs.
3. Empowerment and Good Governance. Empowerment is a precondition of
informal choices. Good governance is a necessary precondition of
empowerment, as empowerment is to good governance. These two are a
defining element of each other.
4. Peace and Solidarity. The cycle of poverty and conflict goes on as the costs
of war escalate in terms of various kinds of destruction while withholding funds
for basic services, resulting in more poverty and underdevelopment.
5. Ecological Integrity. In general, the path towards enhancing the integrity of
the country’s ecological domain will have to involve heightened and sustained
implementation of environmental laws, as well as the continued pursuit of
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resource conservation,
programs.
and
environmental
restoration/enhancement
THE PHILIPPINE COUNCIL FOR SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT (PCSD)
The Philippine Council for Sustainable Development (PCSD) is a multi-sectoral body
formed to coordinate and monitor the fulfillment of the commitments of the Philippine to the
UNCED, and later, the WSSD. It has spearheaded the formulation of PA 21.
THE KEY ACTORS IN SUSTAINABLE DEVELOPMENT WORK
Philippine Agenda 21 recognizes three key actors in sustainable development, and
their roles in the different realms of society.
1. Business. It is the key actor in economy, which is mainly concerned with
producing goods and services for people.
2. Government. It is the key actor in polity, which is concerned with democratic
governance and security of human rights.
3. Civil Society. It is the key actor in culture, which is concerned with the
development of the social and spiritual capabilities of human beings. (“The
Philippine Agenda 21”, 2014)
B. SEVEN PRINCIPLES OF ENVIRONMENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL LAWS
Environmental management refers to those activities which enhance beneficial links and
minimize adverse links among resource systems and their environments, and which seek
to attain desirable environmental system states, in response to community perceptions and
desires, under prevailing socioeconomic and technological conditions.
In particular, the goals of resources management are often single purpose, whereas those
of environmental management are invariably multi-purpose’ this is because resources
management focuses only on its resource system while environmental management deals
with both resource system and their environments. Further, community needs and value
are fundamental to environmental management goal setting.
THE PRINCIPLES OF ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT
These are some guiding principles of environmental management. These principles are
helpful in environmental decision making.
1. Polluter Pays Principle (PPP):
For the last two decades, many economists have suggested that firms discharging polluting
effluents to the environment should somehow be made to pay a price for such discharges
related to the amount of environmental damage caused.
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OECD has suggested the Polluter Pays principles (PPP) as a general basis for the
environmental policy. It states that if measures are adopted to reduce pollution, the costs
should be borne by the polluters. According to the OECD Council, “The principle to be used
for allocating costs of pollution prevention and control measures to encourage rational use
of scarce environmental resources and to avoid distortions in international trade and
investment is the so-called Polluter Pays Principle.” The essential concern of this principle
is that polluters should bear the costs of abatement without subsidy.
The Polluter Pays Principle, as interpreted by the Supreme Court of India, means that the
absolute liability for harm to the environment extends not only to compensate the victims of
pollution but also the cost of restoring the environmental degradation. Thus, it includes
environmental costs as well as direct costs to people or property. Remediation of the
damaged environment is part of the process of sustainable development and as such the
polluter is liable to pay the cost to the individual sufferers as well as the costs of reversing
the damaged ecology.
The application of this principle depends upon the interpretations, particular cases and
situations. This principle has brought more controversial discussions during the Rio Earth
Summit 1992. The South has demanded more financial assistance from the North in
combating the environmental degradation in the South.
There are practical implications on the allocation of economic obligations in relation to
environmentally damaging activities, particularly in relation to liability and the use of
economic instruments.
2. The User Pays Principle (UPP):
It is considered as a part of the PPP. The principle states that all resource users should pay
for the full long-run marginal cost of the use of a resource and related services, including
any associated treatment costs. It is applied when resources are being used and consumed.
3. The Precautionary Principle (PP):
The main objective of the precautionary principle is to ensure that a substance or activity
posing a threat to the environment is prevented from adversely affecting the environment,
even if there is no conclusive scientific proof of linking that particular substance or activity
10 | P a g e
to environmental damage. The words ‘substance’ and ‘activity’ are the result of human
intervention.
The Rio Declaration in its Principle 15 emphasizes on this principle, wherein it is provided
that where there are threats of serious or irreversible damage. Lack of full scientific certainty
shall not be used as a reason for postponing cost-effective measures to prevent
environmental degradation. Therefore, the principle is essential for the protection of
environment and human health by implementing in the field of production and distribution
of energy resources.
4. Principle of Effectiveness and Efficiency:
It is essential that efficiency of resources use may also be accomplished by the use of policy
instruments that create incentive to minimize wasteful use. It also applies to various issues
of environmental governance by streaming processes and procedures in order to minimize
environmental costs.
5. The Principle of Responsibility:
It is the responsibility of all persons, corporations and states to maintain the ecological
processes. Further, access to environmental resources carries attendant responsibilities to
use them in an ecological sustainable economically efficient and socially fair manner.
6. The Principle of Participation:
It is the duty of all the persons to participate in collectively environmental decision-making
activities. Some participation areas are related to the use of trees and other plants, minerals,
soils, fish and wildlife for purposes such as materials and food as well as for consumptive
and non-consumptive recreation. The second issue concerns solid waste i.e. garbage,
construction and demolition materials and chemically hazardous waste etc. The third issue
of participation is related to pollution generating activities.
7. The Principle of Proportionality:
The principle of proportionality is based on the concept of balance. A balance is to maintain
between the economic development on the one hand and environmental protection on the
other hand. It cannot be disputed that no development is possible without some adverse
effects on ecology. Therefore, it is essential to adjust the interest of the people as well as
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the necessity to maintain the environment. Moreover, comparative hardships have to be
balanced and benefits to a larger section of the people have to be maintained.
THE SEVEN ENVIRONMENTAL PRINCIPLES
(According to the Society for the Conservation of Philippine Wetlands, Inc.)
1.
2.
3.
4.
5.
6.
7.
Everything is connected to everything else.
All forms of life are important (thus, the need for biodiversity).
Everything must go somewhere (thus, too much can cause pollution)
Ours is a finite earth (thus, the need for conservation).
Nature knows best (thus, the need for ecological technology).
Nature is beautiful and we are stewards of God’s creation.
Everything changes.
REPUBLIC OF THE PHILIPPINES
CONGRESS OF THE PHILIPPINES
Metro Manila
Fourteenth Congress
Second Regular Session
Begun and held in Metro Manila, on Monday, the twenty-eight day of July, two thousand eight.
REPUBLIC ACT NO. 9512
December 12, 2008
AN ACT TO PROMOTE ENVIRONMENTAL AWARENESS THROUGH ENVIRONMENTAL
EDUCATION AND FOR OTHER PURPOSES
Be it enacted by the Senate and House of Representatives of the Philippines in Congress assembled:
Section 1. Title. – This Act shall be known as the “National Environmental Awareness and
Education Act of 2008“.
Section 2. Declaration of Policy. – Consistent with the policy of the State to protect and advance
the right of the people to a balanced and healthful ecology in accord with the rhythm and harmony
of nature, and in recognition of the vital role of the youth in nation building and the role of education
to foster patriotism and nationalism, accelerate social progress, and promote total human liberation
and development, the state shall promote national awareness on the role of natural resources in
economic growth and the importance of environmental conservation and ecological balance towards
sustained national development.
Section 3. Scope of Environmental Education. – The Department of Education (DepEd), the
Commission on Higher Education (CHED), the Technical Education and Skills Development
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Authority (TESDA), the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), in coordination
with the Department of Environment and Natural Resources (DENR), the Department of Science and
Technology (DOST) and other relevant agencies, shall integrate environmental education in its
school curricula at all levels, whether public or private, including in barangay daycare, preschool,
non-formal, technical vocational, professional level, indigenous learning and out-of-school youth
courses or programs. Environmental education shall encompass environmental concepts and
principles, environmental laws, the state of international and local environment, local environmental
best practices, the threats of environmental degradation and its impact on human well-being, the
responsibility of the citizenry to the environment and the value of conservation, protection and
rehabilitation of natural resources and the environment in the context of sustainable development. It
shall cover both theoretical and practicum modules comprising activities, projects, programs
including, but not limited to, tree planting; waste minimization, segregation, recycling and
composting; freshwater and marine conservation; forest management and conservation; relevant
livelihood opportunities and economic benefits and other such programs and undertakings to aid the
implementation of the different environmental protection law.
Section 4. Environmental Education and Activities as Part of National Service Training
Program. – The CHED and the TESDA shall include environmental education and awareness
programs and activities in the National Service Training Program under Republic Act No. 9163, as
part of the Civic Welfare Training Service component required for all baccalaureate degree courses
and vocational courses with a curriculum of at least two (2) years.
Section 5. Declaration of Environmental Awareness Month. – Pursuant to the policy set forth in
this Act, the month of November of every year shall be known as the “Environmental Awareness
Month” throughout the Philippines.
Section 6. Interagency and Multi-sectoral Effort. – The DepEd, CHED, TESDA, DENR, DOST
and other relevant agencies, in consultation with experts on the environment and the academe, shall
lead in the implementation of public education and awareness programs on environmental protection
and conservation through collaborative interagency and multi-sectoral effort at all levels.
The DENR shall have the primary responsibility of periodically informing all agencies concerned on
current environmental updates, including identifying priority environmental education issues for
national action and providing strategic advice on the environmental education activities. The DepEd,
CHED, TESDA, DENR, DOST, DSWD and barangay units shall ensure that the information is
disseminated to the subject students.
The DOST is mandated to create programs that will ensure that students receive science-based
quality information on environmental issues to encourage the development of environment-friendly
solutions, devices, equipment and facilities.
Section 7. Capacity-Building. – The DepEd, CHED and TESDA, in coordination with the DENR
and other relevant agencies, shall undertake capacity-building programs nationwide such as
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trainings, seminars, workshops on environmental education, development and production of
environmental education materials, and teacher-education courses and related livelihood programs.
Section 8. Separability Clause. – If any part, section or provision of this Act shall be held invalid or
unconstitutional, the other provisions shall not be affected thereby.
Section 9. Repealing Clause. – All other acts, laws, executive orders, presidential issuances, rules
and regulations or any part thereof which are inconsistent with this Act are hereby repealed or
modified accordingly.
Section 10. Effectivity. – This Act shall take effect fifteen (15) days after its publication in the Official
Gazette or in at least two (2) newspapers of general circulation.
Approved,
(SGD.) MANNY VILLAR
President of the Senate
(SGD.) PROSPERO C. NOGRALES
Speaker of the House of Representative
This Act which is a consolidation of Senate Bill No. 1699 and House Bill No. 4381 was finally
passed by the Senate and the House of Representatives on October 8, 2008.
Sgd. MARILYN B. BARUA-YAP
Secretary General
House of Representatives
Sgd. EMMA LIRIO-REYES
Secretary of the Senate
Approved: December 12, 2008
SGD. GLORIA MACAPAGAL-ARROYO
President of the Philippines
IT’S YOUR TURN! As NSTP student, you should be aware now that you have the
responsibility to participate in protecting the environment. With this, start by cleaning the
esteros, backyard, garden, and the streets. This cleaning activity should be documented with photos
and/or videos as proof of evidence. If you do not have camera, observation notes may be accepted
and be submitted through e-mail or text message.
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C. FOREST PROTECTION, CONSERVATION AND DEVELOPMENT
ENVIRONMENTAL PROBLEMS
1. Deforestation. Estimated to have increased erosion and caused the loss of 562 million
hectares (1.4 billion acres) of soil worldwide, and the estimated annual loss is 5-6
million hectares. Cutting forests in one country affects other countries. Nepal, one of
the most mountainous countries in the world, lost more than half of the forest cover
between 1950 and 1980. This destabilized soil, increasing the frequency of landslides,
amount of runoff, and sediment load in streams. Many Nepalese streams feed rivers
that flow into India. Recent heavy flooding in India’s Ganges Valley has caused $1
billion a year in property damage and is blamed on the loss of large forested
watersheds in Nepal, and other countries.
It is difficult to determine the worldwide net rate of change in forest resources. Most
experts, however, disagree with this assessment. Because few forests are successfully
managed to achieve sustainability, it seems likely that the world’s forests are
undergoing a net decline, perhaps rapid. But the fact is, information is lacking on which
to base an accurate evaluation. Because forests cover large, often remote areas that
are little visited or studied, it is difficult to assess the total amount of forest area.
2. Water Crisis. Water is very important in every living thing on earth. An absence or lack
of it will cause a detrimental effect to both man and nature. The earth consists of 75%
water. Our body is also composed of 75% water. This makes water very important to
all living things in this world.
POLLUTION
TYPES OF POLLUTION
1. Air Pollution. Beijing is one of the most air-polluted cities in the world; much of it
consists of very small particles containing sulfur dioxide. Ozone (produced in reactions
between sunlight and hydrocarbon emissions from vehicles) is also a potentially serious
pollutant in the sky. A problem for athletes running hard is that they take in many times
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more air during exortion than a person at rest does. As athletes breathe through the
mouth to bring in more oxygen, they bypass the natural filter provided by the nostrils
and sinuses, and higher concentrations of pollutants will enter the lungs. If sulfur dioxide
is in the air they can take in as much as sulfur dioxide in 15 minutes as a person at rest
does in 4 hours, they also will take in more ozone, which can damage lung tissue.
2. Water Pollution. A pollution that can happen in all bodies of water. It can affect the sea,
rivers, lakes or swamps. It is contaminated water whether from chemical, particulate, or
bacterial matter which lowers the quality and purity of the water. Water pollution also
lowers the amount of potable drinking water and lessens the water supposed to be used
in different irrigation system.
3. Thermal Pollution. It is also called heat pollution; occurs when heat released into water
or air produces undesirable effects. Heat pollution can occur as a sudden, acute event
or as a long-term, chronic release. Sudden heat releases may result from natural events,
such as brush or forest fires and volcanic eruptions, or from human-induced events,
such as agricultural burning. The major sources of chronic heat pollution are electric
power plants that produce electricity in steam generators. The release of large amounts
of heated water into a river changes the average water temperature and concentration
of dissolved oxygen (warm water holds less oxygen than cooler water), thereby
changing the river’s species composition. Every species has a range of temperature
within which it can survive and an optimal temperature for living. For some species of
fish, the range is small, and even a small change in water temperature is a problem.
Lake fish move away when the water temperature rises more than about 1.5°C above
normal, river fish can withstand a rise of about 3°C.
4. Noise Pollution. It can be described as unwanted sound. Sound is a form of energy
that travels as waves. We hear sound because our ears respond to sound waves
through vibrations of the eardrum. The sensation of loudness is related to the intensity
of the energy carried by the sound waves and is measured in units of decibels (dB). The
ill effect of noise pollution to the human being depends on sound frequency and the total
time exposure to the sound.
CHANGES IN CLIMATE
Global surface temperature has increased about 0.2C per decade in the past 30 years. The
warmest years so far since direct surface air temperature have been measured within 1998 and
2002. Since 1997, the eight warmest years have occurred. It is estimated that by 2030 the
concentration of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere will have doubled from the pre-industrial
Revolution concentration. The average global temperature (according to mathematical models) will
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have risen approximately 1 to 2C (2 to 4F), with a forecast of greater temperature increasing toward
the poles. Specific effects of global warming are difficult to predict.
As snow and ice melt, the ground with vegetation and water reflects much less solar energy
than would ice or snow, resulting in enhance warming. Solar energy that would have been reflected
by sea ice is absorbed by ice-free water. This procedure is termed polar amplification.
During El Niño, the normal conditions of equatorial upwelling of deep oceanic waters in the
eastern Pacific are diminished or eliminated. Upwelling releases carbon dioxide to the atmosphere
as carbon dioxide-rich deep water reaches the surface. El Nino events will become more common.
Some researchers have suggested there are strong relationships between El Nino events and
changes in the sea ice cover around Antarctica.
GLOBAL WARMING
Potential Environmental, Ecological, and Human Effects of Global Warming
1. Change in River Flow. With a continuous of global warming, melting of glacial ice and
reduction in snow cover are anticipated to accelerate throughout the twenty-first century.
Rainfall will likely increase, but there will be less snowpack with global warming. Runoff will
be more rapid if snow slowly melts. As a result, reservoirs will fill sooner and more water
will escape to the Pacific Ocean. Lower runoff is projected for much of Mexico, South
America, Southern Europe, India, southern Africa, and Australia. It is important t keep in
mind that these projections are based on global circulation models that are controversial
and subject to variability.
2. Rise in Sea Level. About half the people on earth live in the coastal flooding due to storm
surges. As the sea level rises and population increases, the number of people vulnerable
to coastal flooding increases. Various models predict that the sea level may rise anywhere
from 200cm to approximately 2m (8-80in) in the next century; the most likely rise is probably
20-40cm (8-16in). It is predicted that the sea level could rise as much as 59cm by the end
of this century. This sea level rise threatens island nations and could increase coastal
erosion on open beaches by 50-100m (154230ft), making structures more vulnerable to
damage from waves. It could also cause wetlands, and put additional pressure on human
structures in the coastal zone.
3. Human Health Effects. Some have suggested that global warming might increase the
incidence of malaria. However, this has been shown not to be the case in past and present
circumstances, because temperature alone is not a good correlate for malaria. The same
has been found for tick-borne encephalitis, another disease that some might increase from
global warming.
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THE GREENHOUSE EFFECT
Each gas in the atmosphere has its own absorption spectrum –which wavelengths I absorb
and which it transmits. So des glass, which is transmitted to visible light but opaque to most infrared
wavelengths. Infrared wavelengths are heat radiation, wavelengths that for most processes on the
Earth transfer heat energy from one material to another. Certain gases in the earth’s atmosphere
especially absorb radiation emitted by the warmed surface of the earth. Warmed by this, they re-emit
the radiation. Some of it reaches back to the surface, making earth warmer than it otherwise would
be. In trapping heat this way, the gasses act a little like the same as in a greenhouse). Accordingly,
the effect is called the greenhouse effect. This major greenhouse gases are water vapor, carbon
dioxide, methane, some oxides of nitrogen, and chlorofluorocarbon (CFCs).
The greenhouse effect is a natural phenomenon that occurs on earth as well as on other
planets in our solar system. Most natural greenhouse warming is due to water in the atmosphere;
water vapor and small particles of water in the atmosphere produce about 85% and 12%.
EL NIÑO AND CLIMATE
El Niño refers to a certain kind of periodic variation of currents in the Pacific Ocean,
approximately every seven years, more or less. Under non-El Nino conditions, trade winds blow west
across the tropical Pacific. The warm surface water in the western Pacific tends to pile up, so that
the sea surface can be as much as 0.5 m higher at Indonesia than at Peru. In contrast, during El
Niño, the trade winds weaken and may even reverse. As a result, the eastern equatorial Pacific
Ocean becomes unusually warm, and the westward moving equatorial ocean current weakens or
reverses. The rise in temperature of sea surface waters off the South American coast inhibits the
upwelling of best to reconstruct such temperature records from the mid-nineteenth century to the
present. The situation has improved greatly in recent years, with the establishment of ocean
platforms with automatic weather-monitoring equipment, coordinated by the World Meteorological
Organization.
THE OZONE DEPLETION
The air we breathe at sea level is composed of approximately 21% diatomic oxygen (O 2),
which is two oxygen atoms bonded together. The highest concentrations are in the atmosphere,
ranging from about 15km to 40km (9 to 25mi) in altitude. Approximately 90% of the ozone in the
atmosphere is found in the stratosphere, where peak concentrations are about 400 ppb. The altitude
of peak concentration varies from about 30km (19mi) near the equator to about 15km (9mi) in Polar
Regions.
Ozone Depletion and Chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs)
Hypotheses in the depletion of stratosphere based, for the most part, on physical and
chemical properties of chlorofluorocarbons (CFCs) and knowledge about atmospheric conditions
was immediately controversial. The idea received a tremendous amount of exposure both in
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newspapers and on television ad was vigorously debated by scientists, companies producing CFCs,
and other interested parties.
The public became concerned because everybody products, such as shaving cream, hair
spray, deodorants, paints, and insecticides, were packaged in spray cans that carried CFCs as a
propellant, and air conditions and refrigeration used CFCs as the working fluid in the cooling. The
idea that these products could be responsible for threatening their health and the well-being of the
environment captured the imagination of the American people, may of who responded by writing t
their senators and representatives and making individual decision to purchase fewer product
containing CFCs.
THE CLEAN AIR ACT
Polluter’s must pay. This is the principle behind the Republic Act 8749 otherwise known as
the “Philippine Clean Air of 1999.” The State has the paramount duty to protect and advance
the right of the people to a balanced and healthful ecology in accord with the rhythm and
harmony of nature. It should also promote and protect the global environment to attain
sustainable development while recognizing the primary responsibility of local government
units to dealt with environmental problems. Finally, the State recognizes that a clean and
healthy environment is for the good of all and should, therefore, be the concern of all the
people.
THE STATE POLICIES IN BALANCING DEVELOPMENT AND ENVIRONMENTAL
PROTECTION
1. Formulate a holistic national program for air pollution management that shall be
implemented by the government through proper delegation and effective coordination
of functions and activities.
2. Encourage cooperation and self-regulation among citizens and industries through the
application of market-based instruments.
3. Focus primarily on pollution prevention rather than on control and provide for a
comprehensive management program for air pollution.
4. Promote public information and education and to encourage the participation of an
informed and achieve public in air quality planning and monitoring.
5. Formulate and enforce a system of accountability for short and long-term adverse
environmental impact of a project, program or activity. This shall include the setting up
of a funding or guarantee mechanism for cleanup and environmental rehabilitation and
compensation for personal damages.
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D. WATER SANITATION AND CONSERVATION
USES OF WATER
1. Agriculture Use. Improved irrigation could reduce agricultural withdrawals by 20 to
30%. Because agriculture is the biggest water user, this would be a tremendous
savings.
2. Domestic Use. Domestic use of water accounts for only about 10% of total national
water withdrawals. However, because domestic water use is concentrated in urban
areas, it may pose major local problems in areas where water is periodically or often in
short supply. Most water in homes is used in the bathroom and for washing clothing
and dishes.
WATER SAVING AND CONSERVATION TIPS
1. Use more efficient bathroom fixtures, such as low flow toilets that use one gallon or
less flush rather than the standard five gallons and low-flow shower heads that deliver
less but sufficient water.
2. Turn off water when not absolutely needed for washing, brushing teeth, shaving, and
so on.
3. Flush the toilet only when really necessary.
4. Fix all leaks quickly. Dripping pipes, faucets, toilets, or garden hoses waste water. A
small drip can waste several liters per day, multiply this by millions of homes with a
leak, and a large volume of water is lost.
5. Purchase dishwashers and washing machines that minimize water consumption.
6. Take a long bath rather than a long shower.
7. Don’t wash sidewalks and driveways with water.
8. Consider using gray water (from showers, bathtubs, sinks, and washing machines) to
water vegetation. The gray water from washing machines is easiest to use as it can be
easily diverted before entering a drain.
9. Water lawns and plants in the early morning, late afternoon, or at night to reduce
evaporation.
10. Use drip irrigation and place water-holding mulch around garden plants.
11. Plant drought-resistant vegetation that requires less water.
12. Learn how to read the water meter to monitor for unobserved leaks and record your
conservation successes.
13. Use reclaimed water.
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WASTE DISPOSAL
As industrial and urban areas expanded, the concept of dilute and disperse
became inadequate, and a new concept, known as “concentrate and contain,” came into
use. It has become apparent, however, that containment was and is not always achieved.
Containers, whether simple trenches excavated in the ground or metal drums and ranks,
may leak or break and allow waste to escape. Health hazards resulting from past waste
disposal practices have led to the present situation, in which many people have little
confidence in government or industry to preserve and protect public health.
RECYCLING HUMAN WASTE
The use of human waste or “night soil” on croplands is an ancient practice. In Asia,
recycling of human waste has a long history. Chinese agriculture was sustained for
thousands of years through the collection of human waste, which was spread over
agricultural fields. The practice spread, and by the early twentieth century, land application
of sewage was one of the primary methods of disposal in many metropolitan areas in
countries including Mexico, Australia, and the United States. These early uses of human
waste for agriculture occasionally spread infectious diseases through agents, including
bacteria, viruses, and parasites, applied to crops along with the waste. Today, with the
globalization of agriculture, we still see occasional warnings and outbreaks of disease from
contaminated vegetables.
One of the major problems of recycling human waste is that, along with human
waste, thousands of chemicals and metals flow through our modern waste stream. Even
garden waste that is composted may contain harmful chemicals such as pesticides.
E. THE ROLE OF YOUTH IN THE ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION AND MANAGEMENT
RIGHTS OF CITIZENS IN ENVIRONMENTAL PROTECTION
1. The right to breathe clean air.
2. The right to utilize and enjoy all-natural resources according to the principles of
sustainable development.
3. The right to participate in the formulation, planning, implementation and monitoring of
environmental policies and programs and in the decision-making process.
4. The right to participate in the decision-making process concerning development
policies, plans and programs projects or activities that may have adverse impact on the
environment and public health.
5. The right to be informed of the nature and extent of the potential hazard of any activity,
undertaking or project and to be served timely notice of any significant rise in the level
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of pollution and the accidental or deliberate release into the atmosphere of harmful or
hazardous substances.
6. The right of access to public records which a certain citizen may need to exercise his
or her rights effectively.
7. The right to bring action in court or quasi-judicial bodies to enjoin all activities in
violation of environmental laws and regulations, to compel the rehabilitation and
cleanup of affected area, and to seek the imposition of penal sanctions against violators
of environmental laws.
8. The right to bring action in court for compensation of personal damages resulting from
the adverse environmental and public health impact of a project or activity (Republic
Act 8749).
CLOSURE ACTIVITIES
Ways to protect and manage the environment are
discussed in this chapter. Additional information and readings
may also be accessed in the class’ Facebook Group if you
are interested in extending your knowledge about the lesson.
Based on the lesson presented, what are the key areas
to highlight and remember? Discuss your thoughts by writing
a reflection paper about the chapter. You may use a short
bond paper or yellow paper for this activity. This is good for 1
hour.
SYNTHESIS /
GENERALIZATION
The study of environmental problems and their
solutions are vital to the Philippines and to the world in
general.
EVALUATION
Get a whole sheet of yellow paper or short bond paper
and complete the table below. Make an action plan that will
address environmental concerns particularly in your home,
school, and the community. This is good for 1 hour. Do not
forget to submit your output to your instructor on the
prescribed schedule.
ASSIGNMENT / AGREEMENT
Make an advance reading of the next chapter.
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REFERENCES
Main Reference:
Saluba, D.J. (2014). Fundamentals of National Service
Training Program: Civic Welfare Training Service, First ed.
Manila, Philippines: REX Book Store.
Other References:
Mondal, P. (2020). Environmental Management: 7 Basic
Principles of Environmental Management. Retrieved from
https://www.yourarticlelibrary.com/economics/environmentaleconomics/environmental-management-7-basic-principlesof-environmental-management/39722
Presidential Communications Operations Office (PCOO)
(2020). Republic Act No. 9512 Signed on December 12,
2008. Official Gazette GOVPH. Retrieved from:
https://www.officialgazette.gov.ph/
2008/12/12/republic-act-no-9512/
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