Set 62 of the Environment & Ecology mixed quiz has 20 multiple-choice questions from 17 different topics of the subject: Ecosystem and Food Chains, Sacred Groves and Community Conservation in India, Biosphere Reserves and Ramsar Sites and more. 13 of them were asked in real previous-year papers. A topic quiz checks one chapter; this set revises the whole subject at once, the way an exam paper does, where the next question can come from any chapter. Every question carries an explanation of why the correct option is right and why the others are wrong. Keep to the timer, read the explanations at the end, and go back to the notes of any topic where you slipped.
20 questions with answers and explanations
Free swimming macroscopic animals in an aquatic environment are referred to as
Nekton are animals large enough to be seen with the naked eye that swim actively and can move against water currents.
Read the full explanation →Biodiversity Management Committees and Biodiversity Heritage Sites are provided for by which law?
It builds a three tier system: the National Biodiversity Authority at the centre, State Biodiversity Boards, and a Biodiversity Management Committee in every local body, which keeps a People Biodiversity Register of the plants, animals and traditional uses of its area.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following biosphere reserves is spread over three States in India?
The Nilgiri Biosphere Reserve spreads across Tamil Nadu, Kerala and Karnataka. Set up in 1986, Nilgiri was India's first biosphere reserve, and in 2000 it became the first Indian reserve on UNESCO's World Network of Biosphere Reserves.
Read the full explanation →The Energy Conservation Building Code, as launched in 2007, applied to new commercial buildings having a connected load of at least
The code was drawn up by the Bureau of Energy Efficiency for new commercial buildings with a connected load of 100 kW or more, or a contract demand of 120 kVA or more, and it prescribes requirements for the building envelope, lighting, air conditioning, water heating and electrical systems.
Read the full explanation →Which of the following statements best describes "carbon fertilization" ?
Carbon fertilization is the rise in the rate of photosynthesis, and so in plant growth, when there is more carbon dioxide in the air.
Read the full explanation →Oilzapper, used to clean oil-contaminated soil and sludge, was developed by which Indian institution?
Oilzapper is a consortium of oil-degrading bacteria developed by the institute and used as bioremediation: the bacteria break the hydrocarbons in crude oil and oily sludge into harmless products, which makes it a cheap, low-waste option for contaminated soil at refineries and spill sites.
Read the full explanation →Which organization has enacted the Nature Restoration Law (NRL) to tackle climate change and biodiversity loss?
The Nature Restoration Law is a regulation of the European Union, adopted by its Parliament and Council in 2024. It is part of the European Green Deal and the EU Biodiversity Strategy for 2030.
Read the full explanation →Which mechanism of the Kyoto Protocol allowed a developed country to earn emission credits by funding a clean project in a developing country?
Under it a country with a Kyoto target financed a project such as a wind farm, a biomass plant or a more efficient kiln in a developing country, and the emissions avoided were issued to it as certified emission reductions that counted towards its own target, while the host country…
Read the full explanation →According to the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), which one of the following is the largest source of sulphur dioxide emissions?
The EPA names the burning of fossil fuels by power plants and other industrial facilities as the largest source of sulphur dioxide.
Read the full explanation →Project Tiger was launched in India in which year?
Project Tiger began on 1 April 1973 with a small group of reserves, Jim Corbett among the first, and introduced the idea of a strictly protected core area with a buffer zone of regulated use around it.
Read the full explanation →Which of the following is/are renewable source(s) of energy? 1. Fossil fuel 2. Biofuel 3. Uranium 4. Hydropower Select the correct answer using the code given below.
Biofuel and hydropower are renewable because nature replaces them within a human lifetime, while fossil fuels and uranium are not.
Read the full explanation →With reference to an organisation known as 'BirdLife International', which of the following statements is/are correct? 1. It is a global partnership of conservation organisations. 2. The concept of 'biodiversity hotspots' originated from this organisation. 3. It identifies the sites known or referred to as 'Important Bird and Biodiversity Areas'. Select the correct answer using the code given below.
BirdLife International is a worldwide partnership of independent national conservation organisations, with its secretariat at Cambridge in the United Kingdom, so statement 1 is correct.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following statements with regard to growth of coral reefs is not correct?
Reef-building corals are marine animals and die in fresh water, so this statement is false. Corals are tiny polyps that build skeletons of calcium carbonate and live with algae called zooxanthellae inside their tissues.
Read the full explanation →Leakage of which one of the following gases had caused Bhopal Gas Tragedy in the year 1984 ?
On the night of 2-3 December 1984, methyl isocyanate (MIC) gas leaked from the Union Carbide pesticide plant in Bhopal.
Read the full explanation →Which one of the following is NOT decomposed by bacterial action ?
Ordinary plastics are non-biodegradable, so bacteria and fungi cannot break them down in any useful length of time. Most plastics, such as polyethylene, polypropylene and PVC, are long synthetic polymers made from petroleum.
Read the full explanation →Eco-Sensitive Zones around National Parks and Wildlife Sanctuaries are notified under which Act?
The Union Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change notifies an Eco-Sensitive Zone using the power in Section 3(2)(v) of that Act, read with Rule 5(1) of the Environment (Protection) Rules, 1986, which lets the central government restrict industries and operations in an area it treats as fragile.
Read the full explanation →A bond whose proceeds are used only to finance or refinance a combination of both environmental and social projects is called :
A sustainability bond funds a mix of green and social projects from the same issue. The International Capital Market Association, whose principles most issuers follow, divides labelled bonds by the use of the money raised.
Read the full explanation →'Gadgil Committee Report' and 'Kasturirangan Committee Report', sometimes seen in the news, are related to
Both reports dealt with how to protect the fragile Western Ghats, a global biodiversity hotspot.
Read the full explanation →Van Panchayats, the village forest councils set up under rules framed in 1931, are a feature of which hills?
After years of protest against the reservation of hill forests, the colonial government allowed Kumaon villages to manage part of the civil forest themselves through elected Van Panchayats under rules framed in 1931.
Read the full explanation →Consider the following statements: 1. Climate and Clean Air Coalition (CCAC) to Reduce Short Lived Climate Pollutants is a unique initiative of G20 group of countries. 2. The CCAC focuses on methane, black carbon and hydrofluorocarbons. Which of the statements given above is/are correct ?
The CCAC is not a G20 body, but it does target methane, black carbon and HFCs. The Climate and Clean Air Coalition was launched in February 2012 by the UN Environment Programme together with six countries: Bangladesh, Canada, Ghana, Mexico, Sweden and the United States.
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