Environment and Ecology Mixed Practice — MCQs with Answers (Set 13)

The GCCA targets Least Developed Countries and Small Island Developing States, the groups most vulnerable to climate change.

The GCCA is not coordinated by WRI or WBCSD. It is run by the EU itself.

The Global Climate Change Alliance is genuinely an initiative of the European Union, established in 2007.

Caterpillars themselves are a major food source for birds during breeding season, beyond just adult butterflies.

Butterflies react quickly to habitat and climate shifts, making their populations a useful early-warning indicator for ecologists.

Butterfly decline could reduce populations of wasps, spiders, and birds that depend on them as prey.

There is no established scientific link between butterfly decline and increased fungal infections in cultivated plants.

A huge fall in butterfly populations could genuinely disrupt pollination of plants that rely on them.

Bioremediation works genuinely well on organic pollutants like oil spills, since those compounds can be fully broken down.

Heavy-metal-resistant bacteria can act as biosorbents, removing up to about 90% of cadmium in natural resources.

Heavy metals like cadmium and lead are not truly biodegradable. Bioremediation can immobilize or remove them, but not completely treat them.

TRAFFIC cooperates closely with the CITES Secretariat, feeding data and analysis into international wildlife trade decisions.

TRAFFIC stands for Trade Records Analysis of Flora and Fauna in Commerce, established in 1976.

TRAFFIC’s mission is to ensure that trade in wild plants and animals is not a threat to the conservation of nature.

TRAFFIC is not a bureau under UNEP. It is a joint conservation programme of WWF and IUCN.

Its location helps species move and genes flow between otherwise separated hill systems, supporting landscape-level conservation.

Seshachalam was declared Andhra Pradesh’s first biosphere reserve, recognized under UNESCO’s Man and Biosphere Programme in 2010.

Seshachalam Hills lie in the Eastern Ghats of Andhra Pradesh, spanning Chittoor and Kadapa districts.

Seshachalam Biosphere Reserve assumes importance as a good ecological link between the Eastern Ghats and the Western Ghats.

Calculating an AQI value requires data on at least three pollutants, with at least one being PM10 or PM2.5.

India’s National AQI tracks eight pollutants: PM10, PM2.5, NO2, SO2, CO, O3, NH3, and lead.

The Central Pollution Control Board runs India’s National Air Quality Monitoring Programme across hundreds of stations nationwide.

CO2 and methane matter for long-term climate rather than immediate local health risk, which is why they are excluded from AQI.

Carbon monoxide, nitrogen dioxide, and sulfur dioxide are considered in calculating India’s AQI. Carbon dioxide and methane are not.

The US Geological Survey estimated technically recoverable shale gas at about 6.1 trillion cubic feet, across the Cambay, KG, and Cauvery onland basins.