Environmental monitoring

Abstract

Increasing population, galloping technology and economic development have created awareness of environmental crisis and the need for achieving a balance with nature. The experience of the last few decades has brought into sharp focus the fact that man must start to think of living in harmony with nature. The old concept of progress which has prevailed for the last 200 yr must also take into account the means to safeguard air, water and land which sustain man. A review of activities of International Council of Scientific Unions, other major international (MAB, UNEP) and national bodies (CES, NASA, NOAA, of US) reveals that substantial thrust in earth system sciences is being devoted to research and global measurements of changes in geosphere and biosphere. As a basic step towards study and management of pollution, introduction of man-made pollutants and their interference with the natural processes are sought to be determined. Considerable progress has been made in recent years in respect of monitoring of chemical pollutants in air, water and land as well as their complex inter-relationships. -from Author