Disaster Management

Disaster management
A disaster is a sudden, calamitous event that seriously disrupts the functioning of a community or society and causes human, material, and economic or environmental losses that exceed the community’s or society’s ability to cope using its own resources. Though often caused by nature, disasters can have human origins

Disaster Management can be defined as the organization and management of resources and responsibilities for dealing with all humanitarian aspects of emergencies, in particular preparedness, response and recovery in order to lessen the impact of disasters.

Disaster management Is a systematic process of planning, organising, and leading in order to effectively manage the after-effects of a disaster.
It aims to reduce the negative impact or consequences of adverse events

Types of disasters
Disasters can be classified as natural, man-made and human-induced.

Examples of natural disasters are:
Earthquakes
Volcanoes
Floods
Cyclones

Examples of man-made disasters are:
Nuclear leaks (Fukushima nuclear reactor leak)
Chemical leaks / spills
Terrorist activities
Structural collapse

Examples of human-induced disasters are:
Global warming
Drying-up of ural sea (inland sea) in Russia due to water diversion
Large scale deforestation
Large scale biological warfare

Disaster management cycle
Disaster management is an enormous task. Disasters are not confined to any particular location, neither do they disappear as quickly as they appear. Therefore, it is essential that there is proper management to optimize efficiency of planning and response. Due to limited resources, collaborative efforts at the governmental, private and community levels are necessary.

Disaster management, and methodology,

Disaster management is a cyclical process; the end of one phase is the beginning of another

Timely decision making during each phase results in greater preparedness, better warnings, reduced vulnerability and/or the prevention of future disasters.
Mitigation: Measures put in place to minimize the results from a disaster.
Examples: building codes and zoning; vulnerability analyses; public education.
Preparedness: Planning how to respond.
Example: preparedness plans, emergency exercises/training; warning systems.
Response: Initial actions taken as the event takes place. It involves efforts to minimize the hazards created by a disaster.

Examples: evacuation, search and rescue; emergency relief.
Recovery: Returning the community to normal. Ideally, the affected area should be put in a condition equal to or better than it was before the disaster took place.
Examples: temporary housing; grants; medical care.

Disaster management in India.
In order to manage the various kinds of disasters occurring sporadically in various parts of India, The Disaster Management Act, 2005 provides for the constitution of the following institutions at national, state and district levels.
National Disaster Management Authority
State Disaster Management Authorities
District Disaster Management Authorities
National Institute of Disaster Management and
National Disaster Response Force

VARIOUS PHASES OF DISASTER MITIGATION
Disaster prevention
These are activities designed to provide permanent protection from disasters. Not all disasters, particularly natural disasters, can be prevented, but the risk of loss of life and injury can be mitigated with good evacuation plans, environmental planning and design standards. In January 2005, 168 Governments adopted a 10-year global plan for natural disaster risk reduction called the Hyogo Framework. It offers guiding principles, priorities for action, and practical means for achieving disaster resilience for vulnerable communities.

Disaster preparedness
These activities are designed to minimise loss of life and damage – for example by removing people and property from a threatened location and by facilitating timely and effective rescue, relief and rehabilitation. Preparedness is the main way of reducing the impact of disasters. Community-based preparedness and management should be a high priority in physical therapy practice management.

Disaster relief
This is a coordinated multi-agency response to reduce the impact of a disaster and its long-term results. Relief activities include rescue, relocation, providing food and water, preventing disease and disability, repairing vital services such as telecommunications and transport, providing temporary shelter and emergency health care.

Disaster recovery
Once emergency needs have been met and the initial crisis is over, the people affected and the communities that support them are still vulnerable. Recovery activities include rebuilding infrastructure, health care and rehabilitation. These should blend with development activities, such as building human resources for health and developing policies and practices to avoid similar situations in future.

Basic principles of disaster mitigation
Disaster mitigation measures are the measures that eliminate or reduce the impacts and risks of hazards through proactive measures taken before an emergency or disaster occurs. Example: Building of a floodway.
Disaster mitigation measures may be structural (e.g. flood dikes) or non-structural (e.g. land use zoning). Mitigation activities should incorporate the measurement and assessment of the evolving risk environment. Activities may include the creation of comprehensive, pro-active tools that help decide where to focus funding and efforts in risk reduction.
Other examples of mitigation measures include:
Hazard mapping
Adoption and enforcement of land use and zoning practices
Implementing and enforcing building codes
Flood plain mapping
Reinforced tornado safe rooms
Burying of electrical cables to prevent ice build-up
Raising of homes in flood-prone areas
Disaster mitigation public awareness programs
Insurance programs

Brain food!!

Brain Food: What to Eat When Revising

A common mistake many students make during this crucial period is to eat poorly and unhealthily. Junk food, lots of chocolate, energy drinks and crisps are often eaten in place of normal meals to “keep energy levels up”. However, this is not only harmful to your long-term health, but can also negatively affect your exam performance.

Here are some brain food recommendations during the most stressful period of your academic year...

Salmon (maga, budatha), sardines (kavallu) and mackerel (vanjiram, peddah-mottah) are amongst the healthiest types of fish because they contain lots of protein and omega 3, which is essential to keep a functioning brain working well.

Eggs are one of the most versatile foods on Planet Earth. Fried, boiled, poached or made sunny-side up, eggs are healthy and good brain food.  One egg contains many nutrients, antioxidants, 6g of protein and less than 100 calories (depending on how you cook it

Vegetables and fruit are also low in calories, delicious and can give you an energy boost when you are working away at revising, since they contain fructose and healthy sugars your body can convert into energy. Top snacking fruits: apples, bananas, avocadoes, berries.

peanut butter actually contains healthy fats and lots of protein per serving. This means that as a brain food , just a little can keep you full for a long time.

Coffee smell will make you feel more awake! And while drinking too much coffee is certainly bad for you, research has also shown that a few cups a day can actually be beneficial. Warning: do not overdose!

Healthy bodies do lead to healthy minds. And having a healthy mind will help you ace that crucial exam or paper.

GOOD LUCK!

DISASTER MANAGEMENT CYCLE

DISASTER MANAGEMENT CYCLE

The Disaster management cycle illustrates the ongoing process by which governments, businesses, and civil society plan for and reduce the impact of disasters, react during and immediately following a disaster, and take steps to recover after a disaster has occurred. Appropriate actions at all points in the cycle lead to greater preparedness, better warnings, reduced vulnerability or the prevention of disasters during the next iteration of the cycle. The complete disaster management cycle includes the shaping of public policies and plans that either modify the causes of disasters or mitigate their effects on people, property, and infrastructure.

The disaster cycle or the disaster life cycle consists of the steps that emergency managers take in planning for and responding to disasters. Each step in the disaster cycle correlates to part of the ongoing cycle that is emergency management. This disaster cycle is used throughout the emergency management community, from the local to the national and international levels.

The first step of the disaster cycle is usually considered to be preparedness. Prior to a disaster’s occurrence, emergency manager will plan for various disasters which could strike within the area of responsibility.

The second stage in the disaster cycle is response. Imminently prior to a disaster, warnings are issued and evacuations or sheltering in place occurs and necessary equipment is placed at the ready.

After the immediate response phase of the disaster cycle has been completed, the disaster turns toward recovery, focusing on the longer term response to the disaster. During the recovery phase of the disaster cycle, officials are interested in cleanup and rebuilding. During the recovery phase, lessons learned are collected and shared within the emergency response community.

The mitigation phase of the disaster cycle is almost concurrent with the recovery phase. The goal of the mitigation phase is to prevent the same disaster-caused damages from occurring again.

Finally, using the lessons learned from the response, recovery, and mitigation phases of the disaster the emergency manager and government officials return to the preparedness phase and revise their plans and their understanding of the material and human resources needs for a particular disaster in their community.

IMPACT OF DISASTERS

Developing countries are more prone to disasters than the developed states. As economies develop, there are fewer disaster related deaths and damages. However, increasing wealth causes relatively higher losses in high income nations. Increase in income increases the demand for individual safety, thereby enabling additional costly precautionary measures.
-Not all disasters result in significant ecosystem impact
-Some extreme events have a positive impact on the ecosystem. (floods help rejuvenate floodplain vegetation and are important ecological drivers for many ecological processes in flood plains)
-the non-market impacts due to natural disasters are difficult to quantify (positive impact due to floods)
-Impacts of natural disasters on the environment may be direct, indirect and tangible
              - Direct losses are physical effects that reduce functionality of an individual or structure. This                            includes damage to people, vehicles, buildings, clean-up and disposal costs.
              - Indirect losses affect society by disrupting utility services and local businesses. This includes loss                    of revenue, increased cost, expense incurred due to provision of assistance, lodging and drinking                    water.
              - Intangible losses include psychological impairments due to both direct and indirect losses that                        individuals during the disaster.
-Impacts of natural disasters on infrastructure: These kind of impacts can be quantified. Damage to buildings depends on several factors.
The amount of loss depends upon the condition of the building after the occurrence of the disaster. The building could be:
              - Collapsed
              - Unusable due to structural damage
              - Unusable due to loss of functionality or
              - Habitable with little damage
Damage to roads can affect one or more of the following sub elements(bridge, tunnel or roadway). The damages are listed below:
              - Road breakage causing traffic interruption for days or months
              - Temporary interruption without breakage
              - light damage without traffic interruption
Even in railways as in roadways, the effect depends upon damaged sub-elements. Damages are listed below:
              - Rail breakage causing traffic interruption for days or months
              - Temporary interruption without breakage
              - light damage without traffic interruption

Productive activities include industrial, commercial, handicraft, tourism and farming. The kinds of losses in this category are listed below:

              - Prolonged service interruption of large areas

              - Temporary service interruption of large areas

              - Local and temporary inefficiencies

              - Light damage without inefficiency

Impact of natural disasters on development:

Disasters severely impact the development of a region. All the funds and manpower are diverted to mitigate the efforts of a disaster. The  entire socio-economic activity comes to a grinding halt. A lot of time, money and manpower is used-up in response, reconstruction and rehabilitation work. The government is forced to put all work on the back burner and bring the disaster in focus till the effects of the disaster are minimized and life limps back to normal.

POPULATION GROWTH

POPULATION GROWTH
Population explosion refers to growth of a population at exponential rates to a size that exceeds the environmental carrying capacity of a region. It is usually followed by a population crash.
-A population can be defined as a group of individuals of the same species inhabiting an area
-Population density is the population size in relation to some unit of space and time. It varies with food availability and climatic conditions
-Current population growth has led to famine in areas where food production cannot keep pace with population growth
-The kinds of demands a population places on its resources is also important
-Each species has an inherent reproductive capacity
-Population growth tends to follow a particular pattern. This consists of a lag phase, an exponential growth phase and a stable equilibrium phase.
-When a majority of the population is in the reproducing stage, the population begins to increase at an exponential rate and this stage is called exponential growth phase.This leads to population explosion.
-The graph plotted between population on Y-axis and time on X-axis yields an S shaped growth or a J shaped growth curve showing the growth rate pattern
-Human beings have accumulated knowledge that allows for predictions about the future and can make conscious decisions based on likely course of events and adjust their lives accordingly.

FACTORS CONTROLLING POPULATION GROWTH:
Man has modified the environment with new technologies for a better and secured future on me hand and created the problem of population explosion on the other hand. Some of the factors controlling population growth are listed below:
-Famine and other natural calamities like flood, drought, earthquake, volcanic eruptions, hurricanes, landslides, etc
-Epidemic outbreaks (Ebola virus, etc)
-Wars
-Unnatural accidents caused during transportation, fires, etc

FACTORS ASSISTING IN POPULATION GROWTH:
-High production of food and better technologies for storage, processing and distribution
-Better medical facilities provided during childbirth and immunization for babies against deadly diseases

GROWTH OF HUMAN POPULATION:
The population of a given area also depends on the movement of people either temporarily or permanently.
Emigration refers to movement of people from one community to another in a new locality thus causing a decrease in the original population
Immigration refers to addition of new individuals to a population from other localities
Increase in population causes competition due to identical requirements.
One of the most important consequences of increase in population is scarcity of food leading to starvation and death in extreme cases.
Interaction between populations in a given area can lead to conflicts due to competition for resources or dependence of one on the other (Symbiosis - birds eat ticks on the skin of cows & buffaloes)

CONSEQUENCES OF POPULATION EXPLOSION:
The following are the consequences of population explosion:
-Depletion of resources
-Competition for food and space
-Psychologocal stress
-Pollution of the environment
-Large scale unemployment

WATERSHED MANAGEMENT

WATERSHED MANAGEMENT
The management of a single unit of land with its water drainage system is called watershed management. It is a technique that has several components. The main components of watershed management are:
-Soil and water management and
-Development of vegetative cover
Natural drainage of a watershed unit if managed properly brings about:
-local prosperity due to abundance of water throughout the year
-Abundant water improves the quality of human life in the area by improving health in the community
-Watershed management enhances the growth of agricultural crops and makes it possible to grow more than one crop in a year in dry areas.
-Watershed management begins by taking control over a degraded site by local participation.
-The first step involves taking appropriate soil conservation measures. This is done by constructing a series of long trenches and mounds along hills to hold the rainwater and allow it to percolate in the ground. This ensures that underground stores of water are completely recharged.
-By growing plants, shrubs and trees, soil erosion due to monsoon can be minimized.
-By stall feeding, local grass cover can be increased as free grazing by domestic animals is prevented.
-'Nala' plugs are made in streams so that water is held in streams and does not rush down the hill side.
-Check dams are built in selected sites that hold back large amounts of water.
All the above listed steps constitute watershed management.
Watershed management improves water-table and keeps streams and nalas flowing throughout the year.
-Deforestation is one of the major causes for degraded areas. Afforestation of such degraded areas is an important aspect of watershed management. 

SALIENT FEATURES OF ENVIRONMENTAL ACTS IN INDIA

SALIENT FEATURES OF AIR ACT
-The Air act provides for establishment of central and state boards for implementation of rules under the act
-The Air act aims at prevention, control and abatement of air pollution
-pollution beyond certain limits due to various pollutants discharged through industrial emission is monitored by pollution control boards set up in every state
-The Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB) implements legislation to improve quality of air, prevent and control air pollution in the country.
-The board advises the central government on matters concerning quality of air. It also coordinates activities, provides technical assistance and guidance to state boards in addition to setting the standards for quality of air.
-It collects and disseminates information in respect to air pollution and performs functions prescribed by the act.
-The state boards advise the state government on matters concerning prevention and control of air pollution
-The state boards possess the right to inspect at all reasonable times any control equipment, industrial plant or manufacturing process and give orders to take necessary steps to control pollution.
-The state board inspects air pollution control areas at regular intervals or whenever necessary.
-They are empowered to provide standards for emissions to be laid down for different industrial plants with regard to quantity and composition of emissions.
-A state board may recognize or establish a laboratory for this purpose.
-State government has powers to declare air pollution control areas after consulting with state boards. In the same manner, state government can give instructions to ensure standards of emission from automobiles and restrict operation of certain industrial units.
-Penalties are imposed by the state board and it might appeal to the court to restrain persons for causing air pollution.
-Any person who contravenes any provision of the act is punishable with imprisonment for a term extending to three months or a fine of Rs.10,000 or both. If the offence continues, an additional fine may extend to Rs. 5000 per day for everyday during which the contravention continues after conviction for the first contravention.

SALIENT FEATURES OF WATER ACT
Water act came into effect in 1974 to prevent pollution of water by industrial, agricultural and household water. The main objectives of this act are listed below:
-Prevention, control and abatement of water pollution.
-The act also aims at restoration of wholesomeness of water
-The water act is designed to assess pollution levels and punish polluters
-The central government and state governments have set-up pollution control boards to monitor water pollution.
-The water act of 1974 along with amendments in 1978 is an extensive legislation with more than sixty sections for prevention and control of water pollution.
-Central and state boards have been created under this act for preventing water pollution
-The act empowers the board to take:
               -  water samples for analysis
               - govern discharge of sewage
               - trade effluents
               - study or inspect appeals
               - revision of policies
               - set minimum and maximum penalties
               - publication of names of offenders
               - offences by companies or government departments
               - establish or recognize water testing laboratories and standard testing procedures
-Prevention and control of water pollution is achieved through a 'permit' or a 'consent administration' procedure
-Discharging effluents is permitted by obtaining the consent of state water boards
WATER POLLUTION CESS ACT (1977)
The objective of this act is that anyone consuming water has to pay cess depending on the type of use as listed below:
-Industries using water for industrial cooling, spraying in mine pits or as boiler feed
-Domestic purposes
-Processing (pollutants are biodegradable. Eg: water from slaughter houses)
-Processing (pollutants are not biodegradable and are toxic. Eg: water from tannery waste, industrial wastewater from electroplating industries)
Industries that have a treatment plant installed for treating their effluents can get a rebate of 70% on the cess payable.

SALIENT FEATURES OF WILDLIFE ACT
The wildlife act is aimed at preserving and protecting wildlife and came into effect in 1972.
-This act envisages national parks and wildlife sanctuaries as protected areas to conserve wildlife.
-Under this act, wildlife populations are regularly monitored and management strategies are formulated to protect them.
-The act covers the rights of forest dwellers. The act permits restricted grazing in sanctuaries but prohibits the same in national parks. The act also prohibits collection of non forest timber which might not ham the system.
-The rights of forest dwellers recognized by forest policy of 1988 were taken away by the amended wildlife act of 1991
-The act enables central government to enact the legislation.
-The act appoints a wildlife advisory board, wildlife warden and specifies their duties and powers.
-The act provides a comprehensive list of endangered species and prohibits hunting of the same.
-It protects endangered plants like Beddome Cycad, Blue Vandana, Ladies Sliper Orchid, Pitcher Plant, etc
-The act provides for setting up national parks, wildlife sanctuaries, etc.
-The act provides for constitution of central zoo authority
-There is provision for trade and commerce in some wild species with license for sale, purchase, transfer, etc
-The act imposes a ban on trade or commerce of commercial animals
-The act provides legal powers to officers to punish offenders.
-Under the act, captive breeding programs for endangered species have been initiated.
Eg: Conservation project for Lion (1972), Tiger (1974), Crocodile (1974) & Brown antlered deer (1981)

NOISE POLLUTION

Noise pollution is defined as unwanted or offensive sound that unreasonably intrudes into daily activities. Noise pollution is a problem that affects human health and contributes to a general deterioration of environmental quality.
Sound is measured in decibels (dB)
As per environment protection rules 1999, the permitted noise level is 125 dB.

SOURCES Sources are broadly classified into:
Outdoor  sources: Ex - Industries, Vehicular movement, Construction work, Defence equipment, Explosion, Loud speakers during festivals, high speed aircrafts, launching of Satellites using rockets, etc
Indoor sources: Playing radio or music loudly

EFFECTS: The effects due to excess noise pollution are listed below:
-Emotional or psychological effects such as irritability, anxiety, stress, lack of concentration and mental fatigue
-It has been observed that the performance of school children is poor in comprehension tasks when schools are situated in busy areas of a city due to high background noise.
-Noise interferes with normal auditory communication and may mask auditory warning signals increasing the rate of accidents especially in industries.
-Severe noise pollution may be extremely annoying or painful and hazardous. It lowers workers efficiency at work leading to low productivity and is the main reason for high accident rates on the job.
-Physical damage to the ear and temporary hearing loss called Temporary Threshold Shift (TTS) is experienced. In this case, people will be unable to detect weak sounds. However, hearing ability is regained within one month. Permanent hearing loss called Noise Induced Permanent Threshold Shift (NITPS) is a type of hearing loss from which there is no recovery

At sound level:
less than 80dB - no hearing loss occurs
80 to 130 dB   - temporary effects
more than 95 dB - approximately 50% people develop NIPTS
more than 105 dB - most people experience permanent hearing loss
more than 150 dB - physically ruptures human ear drum
more than 180 dB - kills a person

-Noise pollution may also cause harmful effect on circulatory system by raising blood pressure and altering pulse rates.

CONTROL OF NOISE POLLUTION
The four major concepts to control noise pollution are listed below followed by a brief explanation.
-Reduce noise at source
-Block path of noise
-Increase path length
-Protect recipient
Reduction of noise at source: This can be accomplished by:
-muffling vehicles and machinery to reduce noise
-using rigid sealed enclosures around machinery lined with acoustic absorbing material
-Isolating machines and their enclosures from the floor by using special spring mounts or absorbing mounts and pads
-Regular and thorough maintenance of operating machinery
-Regular lubrication and correct installation of bearings
-Proper highway planning and design are essential for controlling traffic noise.
Blocking path of noise: This can be accomplished by:
-Planting of trees around houses as they act as effective noise barriers
-Using highly absorptive interior finish material for walls, ceilings and floors decreases indoor noise levels
Increasing path length:
-Municipal land use ordinances pertaining to the location of airports make use of the attenuating effect of distance on sound levels
Protect the recipient:
-Specially designed ear plugs and ear muffs reduce the sound level reaching the ear drum by almost 40 dB
-Education, awareness among people and legislation regarding noise pollution should be widely publiced for control of noise pollution.
Eg: Ban on loud speakers from 10 pm to 6 am.

SOIL POLLUTION

SOIL POLLUTION
Soil is the thin covering over land that consists of a mixture of a mixture of minerals, organic material, living organisms, air and water that support life. The several factors that contribute to formation of soil from parent material are listed below:
-mechanical weathering of rocks due to temperature changes and abrasion
-wind, moving water, glaciers, chemical weathering activities and lichens
-Climate and time are important factors that contribute significantly in the development of soil.
          Extremely cold or dry climate result in slow development of soil
          Humid or warm climates result in rapid formation of soil

Soils are arranged in a series of zones called SOIL HORIZONS
Each horizon has a distinct texture and composition and this varies with different types of soils.
Cross sectional view of horizons in a soil is called SOIL PROFILE
Top layer (surface litter layer) called the 'O' horizon is composed of freshly fallen and partially decomposed leaves, twigs, animal waste, fungi and other organic matter. It is brown or black in colour.
Uppermost layer of soil is called 'A' horizon and it consists of partially decomposed organic matter (humus) and some inorganic mineral particles. It is darker and looser than deeper layers.
Roots of most plants are found in these two upper layers mentioned above.
When these layers are anchored by roots of vegetation, soil stores water and releases it slowly as a trickle.
These layers contain a large amount of bacteria, fungi, earthworms and other small insects that form complex food webs in soil and help recycle soil nutrients thereby contributing to soil fertility.

The 'B' horizon also called subsoil contains less organic material and fewer organisms than 'A' horizon

The area below the subsoil is called'C' horizon and is made-up of weathered parent material. This layer does not contain any organic matter and helps determine the pH of soil. It affects the soiil's rate of water absorption and retention

Soils vary in their content of clay, silt, sand, and gravel. Soils with approximately equal mixtures of clay, silt, sand and humus are called LOAMS.

CAUSES OF SOIL DEGRADATION/POLLUTION

EROSION: Erosion is defined as movement of surface litter and top soil from one place to another.
-It is a natural process caused by wind and flowing water
-It is accelerated by human activities like farming, construction, overgrazing by livestock, burning of grasses and deforestation
-It reduces fertility of soil and water holding capacity
-It contributes to water pollution
-It clogs lakes
-It increases turbidity of water
-It leads to loss of aquatic life
-If top soil erodes faster that it is formed, the soil becomes a non-renewable resource
-Water and soil are conserved by integrated treatment methods
-The types of treatment are:
-Area treatment and
-Drainage line treatment

EXCESSIVE USE OF FERTILIZERS: The use of chemical fertilizers has increased substantially over the past few decades.
-Fertilizers are valuable as they replace the nutrients used-up by plants
-Primary soil nutrients in short supply are Potassium (K), Phosphorus (P) and Nitrogen (N). They are also called macronutrients
-Boron (B), Zinc (Zn) and Manganese (Mn) are required in small amounts and are called micronutrients.
-When crops are harvested, large amounts of macronutrients and small amounts of micronutrients are removed with crops.
-On growing the same crops again, low amount of nutrients results in decreased yield
-Necessary nutrients are returned to soil by the application of fertilizers.

USE OF SYNTHETIC CHEMICALS TO IMPROVE CROP PRODUCTIVITY
-Along with fertilizers, pesticides, herbicides, weedicides and fungicides are used to kill unwanted insects, plants and fungi. Rats and mice are killed by rodenticides and plant pests are killed using herbicides.
-Pesticides kill not only pests but also human beings (in sufficiently high doses)
-Persistent pesticides applied once are effective for a long time. They accumulate in the soil and in the bodies of animals in the food chain.
-Biomagnification of persistent pesticides (DDT - half-life = 10 to 15 years)
-Development of insect resistance to insecticides causes farmers to use higher concentration of the same pesticide or use of a different pesticide of higher toxicity
-Pesticides kill beneficial (natural predtors and pollinators) organisms as well as pest species
-Exposure to small quantities of pesticides over several years can cause mutations, cancers, etc.

Alternative agriculture is the broadest term used to describe all non-traditional agricultural methods. This includes:
-sustainable agriculture
-organic agriculture
-alternative methods raising crops
-alternative uses of traditional crops, etc

EXCESS SALTS AND WATER
Irrigated lands produce crop yields much higher than those that use only rain water. Irrigation water contains dissolved salts and in dry climates, the water in the salt solution evaporates leaving salts (NaCl, MgCl2, Na2CO3, etc) in the top soil. The accumulation of salts in soil is called salinization. This leads to:
-stunted plant growth
-low yields
-eventually kill the crop.
Thus, salinization renders the land useless for agriculture.
Salts can be flushed out of soil by using more water. However, this wastes large amounts of water and increases salinity of irrigation water downstream.
If large amounts of water are used to leech salts deep into the soil and drainage is poor, water accumulates underground and gradually raises the water-table covering the roots of plants. This causes the plants to die.

Soil pollution is defined as the introduction of substances, biological organisms or energy into the soil resulting in a change in the quality of soil affecting the normal use of soil or endangering public health and the living environment.

CAUSES
-Erosion
-Accidents involving vehicles transporting waste from site of origin to site of disposal
-Accidents involving vehicles carrying fuel that contaminate the soil when spilled.
-Pollutant might be washed away by precipitation or evaporate if volatile.

Soil pollution is caused by the presence of man-made chemicals or other alteration in the natural soil environment. This type of contamination typically arises from the rupture of underground storage links, application of pesticides, percolation of contaminated surface water to subsurface strata, oil and fuel dumping, leaching of wastes from landfills or direct discharge of industrial wastes to the soil. The most common chemicals involved are petroleum hydrocarbons, solvents, pesticides, lead and other heavy metals. This occurrence of this phenomenon is correlated with the degree of industrialization and intensities of chemical usage.

A soil pollutant is any factor which deteriorates the quality, texture and mineral content of the soil or which disturbs the biological balance of the organisms in the soil. Pollution in soil has adverse effect on plant growth.

Since the metals are not degradable, their accumulation in the soil above their toxic levels due to excessive use of phosphate fertilizers, becomes an indestructible poison for crops.

EFFECTS
-Food shortage: Soil pollution leads to water pollution and reduced food production leading to food shortage. This problem is aggravated by population growth.
-Desertification: Continuous exposure of eroded soil to sun for longer periods transforms land into sandy and rocky land. These are symptoms of desertification and render the soil unsuitable for cultivation
-Decrease in extent of agricultural land
-Top soil that is washed away contributes to water pollution by clogging of lakes and increasing turbidity of water leading to loss of aquatic life.
-Fertilizer run-off leads to eutrophication of waterways.

CONTROL MEASURES
-Proper conservation measures to minimize loss of top soil
-Using Integrated Nutrient Management (INM) and Integrated Pest Management (IPM), bio-pesticides and integrated environment friendly agriculture to reduce dependence on synthetic fertilizers and pesticides.
-Appropriate water management practices in agriculture.
-Keeping soil surface covered with crop residues or crop cover
-Planting trees as part of afforestation
-Using trees as wind breakers or shelter belts
-Undertaking clean-up operations on polluted soils.