Pariksha SaathiGeneral Studies
Environment and Ecology: Practice Questions with Answers
237 practice questions on Environment and Ecology, with answers; most also have an explanation or a worked solution. Try each one before you open its answer.
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Q.1
The Stockholm Convention (2001) aims to eliminate or restrict the production and use of
- A Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) such as DDT
- B Ozone-depleting substances
- C Radioactive wastes
- D Microplastics
Show answer
Correct answer: (A) Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) such as DDT
The Stockholm Convention targets persistent organic pollutants such as DDT, PCBs and dioxins that persist in the environment and biomagnify. Do not confuse it with the Stockholm Conference of 1972.
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Q.2
The Basel Convention (1989) controls
- A Transboundary movement and disposal of hazardous wastes
- B Emission of greenhouse gases
- C Trade in endangered species
- D Use of ozone-depleting chemicals
Show answer
Correct answer: (A) Transboundary movement and disposal of hazardous wastes
The Basel Convention was adopted in Switzerland in 1989 to stop developed countries dumping hazardous waste, including e-waste, in developing countries. Trade in endangered species is CITES and ozone chemicals are Montreal.
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Q.3
The entire sequence of communities that successively change in a given area during ecological succession is called a
- A Biome
- B Ecotone
- C Niche
- D Sere
Show answer
Correct answer: (D) Sere
The whole series of communities is a sere, and each transitional community is a seral stage; the series ends in a relatively stable climax community.
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Q.4
The Supreme Court of India has held that the right to a pollution-free environment is part of the right guaranteed under
- A Article 21
- B Article 14
- C Article 19
- D Article 32
Show answer
Correct answer: (A) Article 21
The Court has read the right to live in a clean and healthy environment into the right to life and personal liberty under Article 21, for example in Subhash Kumar v. State of Bihar (1991). This made environmental protection enforceable through writ petitions.
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Q.5
Which of the following gases has the highest global warming potential per molecule?
- A Carbon dioxide
- B Methane
- C Nitrous oxide
- D Sulphur hexafluoride
Show answer
Correct answer: (D) Sulphur hexafluoride
Global warming potential is measured relative to carbon dioxide (GWP 1). Methane is about 25-30 times and nitrous oxide about 270-300 times as potent over 100 years, but sulphur hexafluoride (SF6) is over 20,000 times as potent.
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Q.6
India's national aquatic animal, declared in 2009, is the
- A Gharial
- B Olive ridley turtle
- C Golden mahseer
- D Gangetic river dolphin
Show answer
Correct answer: (D) Gangetic river dolphin
The Gangetic river dolphin (Platanista gangetica), a blind freshwater dolphin found in the Ganga-Brahmaputra system, was declared the national aquatic animal in 2009. It is listed as Endangered.
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Q.7
Noise was brought within the definition of 'air pollutant' in the Air (Prevention and Control of Pollution) Act 1981 by an amendment made in
- A 1984
- B 1987
- C 1991
- D 2000
Show answer
Correct answer: (B) 1987
The 1987 amendment to the Air Act added the words 'including noise' to the definition of air pollutant, giving the pollution control boards a role in noise control. Detailed noise standards came later through the Noise Pollution (Regulation and Control) Rules 2000 under the Environment (Protection) Act.
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Q.8
The Chipko movement, in which villagers hugged trees to stop felling, began in 1973 in which district of present-day Uttarakhand?
- A Chamoli
- B Tehri Garhwal
- C Almora
- D Nainital
Show answer
Correct answer: (A) Chamoli
Chipko began in 1973 in Chamoli district with Chandi Prasad Bhatt; Gaura Devi led the women of Reni village in 1974, and Sunderlal Bahuguna carried the movement across the Himalaya.
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Q.9
Serious health problems among villagers after years of aerial spraying of the pesticide endosulfan on cashew plantations were reported mainly from which district?
- A Wayanad, Kerala
- B Nilgiris, Tamil Nadu
- C Kasaragod, Kerala
- D Ratnagiri, Maharashtra
Show answer
Correct answer: (C) Kasaragod, Kerala
Aerial spraying of endosulfan on state-owned cashew plantations in Kasaragod was linked to birth defects and other illnesses among local people. Endosulfan was later banned in India by the Supreme Court and listed under the Stockholm Convention on persistent organic pollutants.
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Q.10
India's first national park, established in 1936 as Hailey National Park, is today known as
- A Kanha National Park
- B Jim Corbett National Park
- C Kaziranga National Park
- D Bandipur National Park
Show answer
Correct answer: (B) Jim Corbett National Park
Hailey National Park in present-day Uttarakhand was established in 1936 and renamed after the hunter-turned-conservationist Jim Corbett in 1957. It was also the first reserve under Project Tiger.
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Q.11
High levels of nitrate in drinking water can cause which condition in infants?
- A Fluorosis
- B Blue baby syndrome (methaemoglobinaemia)
- C Minamata disease
- D Rickets
Show answer
Correct answer: (B) Blue baby syndrome (methaemoglobinaemia)
Nitrate from fertiliser run-off and sewage is converted to nitrite in an infant's body, which turns haemoglobin into methaemoglobin that cannot carry oxygen, giving the skin a bluish tinge. Rickets is caused by vitamin D deficiency.
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Q.12
The Bonn Convention (1979) is an international treaty for the conservation of
- A Migratory species of wild animals
- B Tropical rainforests
- C Coral reefs
- D Antarctic wildlife
Show answer
Correct answer: (A) Migratory species of wild animals
The Convention on the Conservation of Migratory Species of Wild Animals (CMS), signed at Bonn, Germany, protects animals that cross national borders. India hosted its COP13 at Gandhinagar in 2020.
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Q.13
The 1995 Nobel Prize in Chemistry for work on the formation and decomposition of ozone, including how CFCs destroy it, was shared by Paul Crutzen, Mario Molina and
- A F. Sherwood Rowland
- B James Lovelock
- C Joseph Farman
- D Charles David Keeling
Show answer
Correct answer: (A) F. Sherwood Rowland
In 1974 Mario Molina and F. Sherwood Rowland showed that CFCs could release chlorine that destroys stratospheric ozone. Joseph Farman was one of the British scientists who reported the Antarctic ozone hole in 1985.
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Q.14
The 'polluter pays principle', applied by Indian courts in environmental cases, means that
- A The government should pay for all pollution clean-up
- B The polluter should bear the cost of remedying the environmental damage caused
- C Victims of pollution should pay a cess for its treatment
- D Polluting industries must always be closed down
Show answer
Correct answer: (B) The polluter should bear the cost of remedying the environmental damage caused
Under this principle, whoever causes pollution must pay to restore the environment and compensate the victims, as the Supreme Court held in the Indian Council for Enviro-Legal Action case (1996). It is also Principle 16 of the Rio Declaration.
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Q.15
In an age pyramid, an urn-shaped structure, with a narrow base of pre-reproductive individuals, indicates a population that is
- A Expanding
- B Stable
- C Declining
- D Growing exponentially
Show answer
Correct answer: (C) Declining
A broad triangular base indicates an expanding population and a bell shape a stable one; an urn shape, with fewer young than reproductive adults, indicates a declining population.
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Q.16
Under the Forest (Conservation) Act 1980, diversion of forest land for non-forest purposes requires the prior approval of the
- A State Government
- B Gram Sabha
- C National Green Tribunal
- D Central Government
Show answer
Correct answer: (D) Central Government
The Forest (Conservation) Act 1980 was enacted to check deforestation by requiring prior Central Government approval before any forest land is de-reserved or used for non-forest purposes such as mining or roads.
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Q.17
Which animal appears in the logo of the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF)?
- A Tiger
- B Polar bear
- C Giant panda
- D African elephant
Show answer
Correct answer: (C) Giant panda
The WWF, founded in 1961 and headquartered at Gland, Switzerland, uses the giant panda as its logo. It also runs Earth Hour, observed on the last Saturday of March.
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Q.18
The term 'ecosystem' was coined in 1935 by
- A A.G. Tansley
- B Ernst Haeckel
- C Eugene Odum
- D Raymond Lindeman
Show answer
Correct answer: (A) A.G. Tansley
The British botanist Arthur Tansley coined 'ecosystem' in 1935 for the system formed by living organisms and their physical environment. Odum is called the father of modern ecosystem ecology but did not coin the term.
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Q.19
Arrange the following institutions in the chronological order of their establishment: 1. Zoological Survey of India 2. Bombay Natural History Society 3. Botanical Survey of India 4. Wildlife Institute of India
- A 3, 2, 1, 4
- B 2, 1, 3, 4
- C 2, 3, 1, 4
- D 3, 1, 2, 4
Show answer
Correct answer: (C) 2, 3, 1, 4
The Bombay Natural History Society was founded in 1883, the Botanical Survey of India in 1890, the Zoological Survey of India in 1916 and the Wildlife Institute of India, Dehradun, in 1982.
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Q.20
Under the Paris Agreement, the climate action targets that each country sets for itself and submits to the UNFCCC are called
- A Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs)
- B Annex I commitments
- C Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) credits
- D REDD+ pledges
Show answer
Correct answer: (A) Nationally Determined Contributions (NDCs)
Countries first submitted Intended Nationally Determined Contributions (INDCs) before Paris; once a country joins the Agreement they become its NDCs, to be updated every five years. Annex I targets belong to the Kyoto system.
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Q.21
The dodo, a flightless bird that became extinct in the 17th century because of hunting and animals introduced by humans, lived only on
- A Madagascar
- B Mauritius
- C New Zealand
- D Sri Lanka
Show answer
Correct answer: (B) Mauritius
The dodo lived only on the Indian Ocean island of Mauritius and disappeared within decades of human arrival; 'as dead as a dodo' became a byword for extinction.
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Q.22
According to Allen's rule, mammals living in colder climates generally have
- A Longer ears and limbs, which increase heat loss
- B Thinner fur and less body fat
- C Shorter ears and limbs, which reduce heat loss
- D Larger ears for hearing prey under snow
Show answer
Correct answer: (C) Shorter ears and limbs, which reduce heat loss
Allen's rule states that mammals of cold regions have shorter extremities such as ears and limbs; the smaller exposed surface area reduces heat loss. Animals of hot deserts, by contrast, often have long ears that help shed heat.
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Q.23
The Ramsar Convention on Wetlands (1971) is named after a city in
- A Iraq
- B Switzerland
- C Japan
- D Iran
Show answer
Correct answer: (D) Iran
The convention was signed in 1971 at Ramsar, a city on the Caspian Sea coast of Iran. It provides the framework for declaring Wetlands of International Importance (Ramsar sites).
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Q.24
Consider the following statements about decomposition: 1. Decomposition is faster when detritus is rich in lignin and chitin. 2. Warm and moist conditions favour decomposition. Which of the statements given above is/are correct?
- A Only 1
- B Only 2
- C Both 1 and 2
- D Neither 1 nor 2
Show answer
Correct answer: (B) Only 2
Lignin and chitin resist decay, so such detritus decomposes slowly, whereas detritus rich in nitrogen and sugars decomposes quickly. Warm, moist conditions favour decomposition, while low temperature and lack of oxygen slow it.
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Q.25
Which of the following is NOT one of the national missions under India's National Action Plan on Climate Change (NAPCC), released in 2008?
- A National Mission for Clean Ganga
- B National Solar Mission
- C National Water Mission
- D National Mission for a Green India
Show answer
Correct answer: (A) National Mission for Clean Ganga
The NAPCC's missions cover solar energy, enhanced energy efficiency, sustainable habitat, water, the Himalayan ecosystem, a Green India, sustainable agriculture and strategic knowledge for climate change. The National Mission for Clean Ganga is a separate body for rejuvenating the Ganga.
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Q.26
Greenhouse gases warm the Earth mainly by absorbing
- A Incoming ultraviolet radiation from the Sun
- B Visible light reflected by clouds
- C Outgoing infrared radiation emitted by the Earth's surface
- D Cosmic rays from outer space
Show answer
Correct answer: (C) Outgoing infrared radiation emitted by the Earth's surface
Sunlight passes through the atmosphere and heats the surface, which then emits long-wave infrared radiation. Greenhouse gases absorb much of this outgoing radiation and send part of it back towards the surface, keeping the lower atmosphere warm.
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Q.27
Which is the most abundant greenhouse gas in the Earth's atmosphere?
- A Carbon dioxide
- B Methane
- C Water vapour
- D Nitrous oxide
Show answer
Correct answer: (C) Water vapour
Water vapour is the most abundant greenhouse gas, but its amount is controlled mainly by temperature rather than directly by human emissions. Carbon dioxide is the main greenhouse gas added by human activities.
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Q.28
One carbon credit is equivalent to the reduction or removal of
- A 1 kg of carbon dioxide
- B 100 kg of carbon dioxide
- C 1 tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent
- D 10 tonnes of carbon dioxide equivalent
Show answer
Correct answer: (C) 1 tonne of carbon dioxide equivalent
A carbon credit is a tradable certificate representing one tonne of carbon dioxide (or its equivalent in other greenhouse gases) kept out of the atmosphere. Credits are traded under mechanisms like Kyoto's CDM.
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Q.29
World Environment Day, instituted after the 1972 Stockholm Conference, is observed every year on
- A 22 April
- B 5 June
- C 16 September
- D 2 February
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Correct answer: (B) 5 June
The Stockholm Conference opened on 5 June 1972, and the UN declared that date World Environment Day, first observed in 1974. 22 April is Earth Day, 16 September Ozone Day and 2 February Wetlands Day.
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Q.30
Concern that sulphur dioxide from a nearby oil refinery could damage the Taj Mahal through acid deposition centred on the refinery at
- A Panipat
- B Barauni
- C Mathura
- D Koyali
Show answer
Correct answer: (C) Mathura
Emissions from the Mathura refinery near Agra raised fears for the Taj's marble, and the Supreme Court later restricted polluting industries in the Taj Trapezium Zone around the monument. The Barauni refinery is in Bihar and Koyali is in Gujarat.
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Q.31
Black foot disease and skin lesions caused by drinking contaminated groundwater over many years are associated with poisoning by
- A Mercury
- B Cadmium
- C Lead
- D Arsenic
Show answer
Correct answer: (D) Arsenic
Chronic arsenic poisoning (arsenicosis) causes skin lesions and black foot disease, a gangrene of the feet. Arsenic in groundwater is a serious problem in the Ganga plains of West Bengal and Bihar and in Bangladesh.
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Q.32
Kaziranga National Park in Assam is world-famous for the conservation of the
- A Asiatic lion
- B Snow leopard
- C One-horned rhinoceros
- D Nilgiri tahr
Show answer
Correct answer: (C) One-horned rhinoceros
Kaziranga, a UNESCO World Heritage Site on the Brahmaputra floodplain, holds the world's largest population of the greater one-horned rhinoceros. It is also a tiger reserve.
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Q.33
Which of the following was NOT among the nine tiger reserves with which Project Tiger began in 1973?
- A Manas
- B Similipal
- C Periyar
- D Kanha
Show answer
Correct answer: (C) Periyar
The original nine were Manas, Palamau, Similipal, Corbett, Kanha, Melghat, Bandipur, Ranthambore and Sundarbans. Periyar in Kerala became a tiger reserve later, in 1978.
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Q.34
Acid rain is caused mainly by atmospheric oxides of
- A Carbon and hydrogen
- B Chlorine and fluorine
- C Phosphorus and potassium
- D Sulphur and nitrogen
Show answer
Correct answer: (D) Sulphur and nitrogen
Sulphur dioxide and nitrogen oxides from burning coal and petroleum dissolve in rain to form sulphuric and nitric acids, giving rain a pH below 5.6. Acid rain has damaged the Taj Mahal's marble.
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Q.35
Which site was declared India's first Biodiversity Heritage Site, in 2007, under the Biological Diversity Act, 2002?
- A Hogrekan
- B Glory of Allapalli
- C Nallur Tamarind Grove
- D Ameenpur Lake
Show answer
Correct answer: (C) Nallur Tamarind Grove
State governments notify Biodiversity Heritage Sites under Section 37 of the Act; the Nallur Tamarind Grove near Devanahalli in Karnataka was the first, in 2007. The other three were notified later.
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Q.36
The presence of which bacterium in a water sample is used as an indicator of contamination by human or animal faeces?
- A Rhizobium
- B Escherichia coli
- C Lactobacillus
- D Nitrobacter
Show answer
Correct answer: (B) Escherichia coli
E. coli and other coliform bacteria live in the intestines of humans and warm-blooded animals, so finding them in water shows faecal contamination and a risk of diseases such as cholera and typhoid. Rhizobium fixes nitrogen in the root nodules of legumes.
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Q.37
The rate at which new organic matter is formed by consumers (heterotrophs) in an ecosystem is called
- A Secondary productivity
- B Gross primary productivity
- C Net primary productivity
- D Standing crop
Show answer
Correct answer: (A) Secondary productivity
Primary productivity is the rate of biomass production by plants, while secondary productivity is the rate at which consumers form new organic matter from the food they assimilate. Standing crop is an amount present at a given time, not a rate.
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Q.38
The Crocodile Conservation Project, which used captive rearing and release of gharials, muggers and saltwater crocodiles, was launched by the Government of India in
- A 1969
- B 1975
- C 1982
- D 1991
Show answer
Correct answer: (B) 1975
Launched in 1975 with UNDP and FAO assistance, the project followed a 'rear and release' approach: eggs were collected from the wild, hatched and reared in captivity, and the young released into protected rivers and wetlands.
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Q.39
The Paris Agreement (2015) aims to keep the rise in global average temperature well below ___ above pre-industrial levels.
- A 1 degree Celsius
- B 1.5 degrees Celsius
- C 2 degrees Celsius
- D 3 degrees Celsius
Show answer
Correct answer: (C) 2 degrees Celsius
The Paris Agreement, adopted at COP21, commits countries to keep warming well below 2 degrees Celsius and to pursue efforts to limit it to 1.5 degrees Celsius. Remember both numbers and their different roles.
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Q.40
Project Tiger, India's flagship wildlife conservation programme, was launched in
- A 1969
- B 1973
- C 1980
- D 1992
Show answer
Correct answer: (B) 1973
Project Tiger was launched on 1 April 1973 with nine tiger reserves, starting from Jim Corbett National Park. The Wildlife (Protection) Act came a year earlier in 1972 and Project Elephant in 1992.
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Q.41
The Cartagena Protocol (2000), adopted under the Convention on Biological Diversity, deals with
- A Access to genetic resources and benefit sharing
- B Safe transfer, handling and use of living modified organisms
- C Protection of wetlands
- D Combating desertification
Show answer
Correct answer: (B) Safe transfer, handling and use of living modified organisms
The Cartagena Protocol on Biosafety governs the movement of living modified organisms (LMOs) from modern biotechnology between countries, letting importing countries decide on them in advance. Access and benefit sharing is covered by the Nagoya Protocol.
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Q.42
The catastrophic decline of vulture populations in India during the 1990s was caused mainly by the veterinary drug
- A Ibuprofen
- B Diclofenac
- C Paracetamol
- D Aspirin
Show answer
Correct answer: (B) Diclofenac
Vultures that fed on carcasses of cattle treated with diclofenac died of kidney failure, wiping out over 95 percent of Gyps vultures. Veterinary use of diclofenac was banned in India in 2006.
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Q.43
Which bacterium lives symbiotically in the root nodules of leguminous plants and fixes atmospheric nitrogen?
- A Nitrosomonas
- B Nitrobacter
- C Rhizobium
- D Pseudomonas
Show answer
Correct answer: (C) Rhizobium
Rhizobium forms nodules on the roots of legumes such as gram, pea and groundnut and converts nitrogen gas into ammonia. Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter are nitrifying bacteria, and Pseudomonas is a denitrifier.
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Q.44
Under Extended Producer Responsibility (EPR), applied in India to e-waste and plastic packaging, the responsibility for environmentally sound handling of a product at the end of its life rests mainly with
- A The consumer alone
- B The municipal body alone
- C The producer of the product
- D The State Pollution Control Board
Show answer
Correct answer: (C) The producer of the product
EPR makes manufacturers, importers and brand owners responsible for collecting and recycling or safely disposing of their products after use. India's e-waste and plastic waste rules are built on this principle.
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Q.45
In an ecosystem, dead plants and animals are broken down into simple inorganic substances mainly by
- A Green algae
- B Herbivorous insects
- C Carnivorous birds
- D Bacteria and fungi
Show answer
Correct answer: (D) Bacteria and fungi
Bacteria and fungi are the chief decomposers; they secrete enzymes that break down dead organic matter and return minerals to the soil. Algae are producers, while insects and birds are consumers.
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Q.46
The transition zone between two adjacent ecosystems, such as a mangrove zone between land and sea, is called
- A Biome
- B Niche
- C Ecosphere
- D Ecotone
Show answer
Correct answer: (D) Ecotone
An ecotone is the boundary zone where two ecosystems meet, for example an estuary or a mangrove belt. It often has more species than either ecosystem, a phenomenon called the edge effect.
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Q.47
Coral reefs are built up mainly from the skeletons of tiny marine animals called coral polyps, which secrete
- A Silica
- B Calcium phosphate
- C Calcium carbonate
- D Chitin
Show answer
Correct answer: (C) Calcium carbonate
Coral polyps secrete hard skeletons of calcium carbonate (limestone); over thousands of years these accumulate to form reefs.
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Q.48
The Nagoya Protocol (2010) under the Convention on Biological Diversity deals with
- A Biosafety of living modified organisms
- B Protection of wetlands
- C Conservation of migratory birds
- D Access to genetic resources and fair sharing of benefits
Show answer
Correct answer: (D) Access to genetic resources and fair sharing of benefits
The Nagoya Protocol on Access and Benefit Sharing (ABS) ensures that countries and communities providing genetic resources share in the benefits of their use. The CBD's other protocol, Cartagena (2000), covers biosafety.
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Q.49
The National Biodiversity Authority, established under the Biological Diversity Act 2002, has its headquarters at
- A New Delhi
- B Chennai
- C Bengaluru
- D Dehradun
Show answer
Correct answer: (B) Chennai
The National Biodiversity Authority was set up in 2003 at Chennai to implement the Biological Diversity Act 2002, which gives effect to the Convention on Biological Diversity in India.
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Q.50
Net primary productivity (NPP) of an ecosystem is equal to
- A Gross primary productivity plus respiration losses of producers
- B Gross primary productivity minus respiration losses of producers
- C Secondary productivity minus decomposition
- D Total solar radiation received by the ecosystem
Show answer
Correct answer: (B) Gross primary productivity minus respiration losses of producers
NPP = GPP − R. Plants use part of their gross primary productivity in respiration; the remainder, the net primary productivity, is available to herbivores and decomposers.
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How these questions were made
Authored by an AI assistant (Claude) from its own general knowledge of stable, well-established facts (no live lookup) - not reviewed by a subject-matter expert; verify against an official source before relying on any fact.