Something to Know
A. Fill in the blanks.
1. Forests serve as home to many types of animals.
2. Forests absorb large amounts of carbon dioxide gas.
3. Deforestation decrease rainfall in the surrounding areas.
4. Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary is the largest bird sanctuary in Asia.
5. For early man, forests were a source of food and shelter.
B. Match the following:
1. resins d. paint
2. forests c. soil conservators
3. deforestation a. cutting down of trees
4. Aswagandha e. medicinal plant
5. gums b. adhesives
C. Tick (✔) the correct option.
1. The leaf, used to make disposable plates, is the-
(a) tendu leaf
(b) areca nut leaf (✔)
(c) amla leaf
(d) brahmi leaf
Answer – (b) areca nut leaf (✔)
2. Deforestation results in—
(a) soil erosion
(b) floods
(c) low rainfall
(d) all the above (✔)
Answer – (d) all the above (✔)
3. Bee wax is used to make
(a) spices
(b) varnish
(c) medicine (✔)
(d) adhesive
Answer – (c) medicine (✔)
4. Which of the following is not a forest product?
(a) gum
(b) timber
(c) aswagandha
(d) kerosene (✔)
Answer – (d) kerosene (✔)
5. If forests disappear, the amount of-
(a) carbon dioxide, in air, will decrease.
(b) oxygen, in air, will increase.
(c) carbon dioxide, in air, will increase. (✔)
(d) nitrogen, in air, will increase.
Answer – (c) carbon dioxide, in air, will increase. (✔)
D. Answer the following questions in brief.
1. Name any four products that are obtained from forests.
Answer – Four products that are obtained from forests:
Wood, medicines, honey, bamboo.
2. Why do some men cut trees?
Answer – Some men cut trees because of the following reasons:
Need more land to make houses, industries, and for agriculture.
Need wood for construction.
3. What is the Gir National Park famous for?
Answer – Gir National Park is famous for Asiatic lions.
4. Name two migratory birds that visit Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary.
Answer – Two migratory birds that visit Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary are Siberian crane, baron
5. What is the average temperature and annual rainfall needed for a forest to develop?
Answer – The average temperature needed is greater than 10 degree celsius and the annual rainfall needed is 200 mm for a forest to develop.
E. Answer the following questions.
1. List four harmful effects of deforestation.
Answer – Four harmful effects of deforestation are–
i. Decrease in rainfall.
ii. Increase in global warming.
iii. Decrease in the levels of ground water.
iv. Increase in soil erosion and thus more frequent floods.
2. How do forests prevent soil erosion?
Answer – Trees bind soil particles with their strong roots. This prevents soil from being washed away. In this way, forests prevent soil erosion.
3. State the importance of forests to human beings.
Answer – Forests are important to human beings in following ways:
i. It purifies the air by absorbing carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen.
ii. It helps in checking global warming.
iii. Forests prevent soil erosion.
iv. Forests help to bring good rainfall.
v. Forests provide many forest products.
4. Why are forests known as the ‘lungs of earth’?
Answer – Just as our lungs absorb carbon dioxide from the blood and infuse it with oxygen, green plants absorb carbon dioxide during photosynthesis and in return, release oxygen into the atmosphere. That’s why the forests are known as the ‘lungs of earth’.
5. How can we contribute towards protection of forests?
Answer – We can contribute towards forests:
i. by minimising the use of wood and wood products.
ii. by not using products that promote destruction of forests.
iii. by spreading awareness by celebrating festivals like Van Mahotsava.
VALUE BASED QUESTION
Ridhi visited Kullu-Manali during her vacation. She glanced at shops with showpieces, household items, decorative items, key rings and jewellery boxes. She was attracted towards the gift items made of wood. She wanted to buy some such gifts for her friends. Her mother suggested that she should buy fresh fruit boxes of cherries, peaches and almonds as gifts for her friends. Ridhi agreed with her mother and did not buy items made from wood.
1. Who do you think had made the better choice of purchasing the gifts?
-Ridhi or her mother?
Answer – Ridhi’s mother had made a better choice of purchasing the gifts by not promoting the cutting of trees.
2. Make a list of five things, used at home or school, made from wood.
Answer – Five things used at home or school made from wood:
table, chair, desk, door, duster
3. Suggest two ways by which every person can contribute towards forest conservation.
Answer – Two ways by which every person can contribute towards forest conservation are:
i. by minimising the use of wood and wood products.
ii. by spreading awareness by making posters or writing slogans.
Something to Do
1. Visit a national park or a wildlife sanctuary and prepare a list of ten plants and ten animals that you see there. Are these plants and animals present in the area where you live? What could be the reason?
Answer – Students will do the needful to answer the above question.
2. Given below is a poem about how human activities can be harmful to the environment. Read this poem and write down five harmful activities of humans. Suggest some ways by which we can stop and reverse the harmful effects.
“The world is finite, resources are scarce,
Things are bad and will be worse,
Coal is burned and gas exploded,
Forests cut and soil eroded,
Wells are dry and air polluted,
Dust is blowing, trees are uprooted,
Oil is going, ores depleted,
Drains receive what is excreted,
Land is sinking, seas are rising,
Man is far too enterprising,
Fires will rage with man to fan it,
Soon we will have a plundered planet.”
— K.E. Boulding
Answer – Human activities can be harmful to the environment are
1. Excessive carbon emission.
2. Polluting water by dumping household waste into the river.
3. Cutting trees for urbanisation.
4. Population explosion.
5. Use of plastic materials ay huge amount.
The simple way to save the world for our future generation is one has to be rational, thoughtful and reasonable toward their day-to-day activities and must ensure that all activities will be earth and environment friendly.
Inside Questions
1. What is a forest?
Answer – A forest is an area where the earth is covered by a very large number of trees.
2. Write any five uses of forests.
Answer – The five uses of forests are-
It purifies the air by absorbing carbon dioxide and releasing oxygen.
It helps in checking global warming.
Forests prevent soil erosion.
Forests help to bring good rainfall.
Forests provide many forest products.
3. List the forest products that are used by humans.
Answer – The forest products that are used by humans are:
i. Wood/timber: Wood used for making furniture, paper and as fuel.
ii. Medicines and spices.
iii. Gums, resins and dyes.
iv. Special leaves for making disposable plates.
v. Honey and bamboo.
4. Name any five items that are made with bamboo.
Ans- Baskets, boats, bridges, buckets, cooking utensils.
5. What is ‘ The Forest Conservation Act’? When was it enacted?
Answer – The Forest Conservation Act is an act enacted by the Indian Parliament to protect forests. According to its rules, the indiscriminate cutting of trees, in forests is a punishable offence. It was enacted in 1980.
6. Differentiate between a national park and a sanctuary.
Answer –
| National Park (i) An area owned and protected by the national government for the conservation of forest and animals. (ii) No human activity is allowed here. (iii) Examples- Gir National Park (Gujarat),Corbett National Park( Uttarakhand) | Sanctuary (i) Areas, marked by the government for protection of the wild. (ii) Limited activities are permitted. (iii) Examples- Bharatpur Bird Sanctuary(Rajasthan), Periyar Wildlife Sanctuary( Kerala) |
7. Name the animal in the logo of WWF( World Wildlife Fund).
Answer – Giant Panda
By Sunaina Karmakar