All Courses
Explore Courses UPSC Exam UPSC Test Series Free Notes EduRev Infinity Get the App Login Join for Free
Sign in Open App
UPSC Exam  >  UPSC Questions  >  What do you understand by Ecological footprin... Start Learning for Free
SaveJoin the Discussion on the App
What do you understand by Ecological footprint? 
  • a)
    The way in which ecological agents reveal their preferences through ecological activity 
  • b)
    A degree of impairment to an ecosystem, which when surpassed is too severe to allow recovery of that ecosystem 
  • c)
    An index of the area of a productive ecosystem required to produce the resources used and to assimilate the wastes produced by a defined population 
  • d)
    Non-monetary assessment of ecosystem integrity, health or resilience
Correct answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer?
FREE This question is part of
Download PDF Attempt Test
Download PDF Attempt this Test
Most Upvoted Answer
What do you understand by Ecological footprint?a)The way in which ecol...
The correct answer is option 'C' - An index of the area of a productive ecosystem required to produce the resources used and to assimilate the wastes produced by a defined population.

Ecological footprint is a measure that quantifies the impact of human activities on the environment by calculating the amount of productive land and water needed to support those activities and absorb the waste generated. It is a way to assess the sustainability of human consumption and resource usage patterns.

The concept of ecological footprint was developed in the early 1990s by Mathis Wackernagel and William Rees. It is based on the idea that every human activity has an ecological impact, and this impact can be measured in terms of the amount of biologically productive land and water required to sustain it. The ecological footprint is measured in global hectares (gha), which represent the average productivity of all biologically productive land and water on Earth in a given year.

To understand the concept of ecological footprint, let's break it down into its key components:

1. Area of a productive ecosystem: The ecological footprint measures the area of land and water required to produce the resources consumed by a population and to absorb the waste generated. It takes into account the productive capacity of ecosystems, including croplands, grazing lands, forests, fishing grounds, and built-up areas.

2. Resources used: The ecological footprint considers all the resources consumed by a population, such as food, water, energy, timber, and other raw materials. It quantifies the land and water area required to produce these resources.

3. Wastes produced: The ecological footprint also includes the assimilation capacity of ecosystems, which refers to the ability of ecosystems to absorb and process the waste generated by human activities, such as carbon emissions, water pollution, and solid waste. It calculates the land and water area needed to assimilate these wastes.

4. Defined population: The ecological footprint is calculated for a specific population, whether it is an individual, a community, a city, a country, or the entire global population. It provides a measure of the sustainability of the resource consumption and waste generation patterns of that population.

By calculating the ecological footprint, we can gain insights into how our lifestyle choices and consumption patterns affect the environment. It helps us understand the ecological limits of our planet and encourages us to make more sustainable choices to reduce our impact on the Earth's ecosystems.
< Previous Question Next Question >
Explore Courses for UPSC exam

Similar UPSC Doubts

The Himalayan ecosystem is highly vulnerable to damage, both due to geological reasons and on account of the stress caused by increased pressure of population, exploitation of natural resources and other related challenges. These aspects may be exacerbated due to the impact of climate change. It is possible that climate change may adversely impact the Himalayan ecosystem through increased temperature altered precipitation patterns, episodes of drought and biotic influences.This would not only impact the very sustenance of the indigenous communities in uplands but also the life of downstream dwellers across the country and beyond.Therefore, there is an urgent need for giving special attention to sustain the Himalayan ecosystem. This would require conscious efforts for conserving all the representative systems.Further, it needs to be emphasized that the endemics with restricted distribution, and most often with specialized habitat requirements, are among the most vulnerable elements. In this respect the Himalayan biodiversity hotspot, with rich endemic diversity, is vulnerable to climate change.The Threats include possible loss of genetic resources and species, habitats and concomitantly a decrease in ecosystem services. Therefore, conservation of endemic elements in representative ecosystems/habitats assumes a great significance while drawing conservation plans for the region.Towards achieving the above, we will have to shift towards contemporary conservation approaches, which include a paradigm of landscape level interconnectivity between protected area systems. The concept advocates a shift from the species-habitat focus to an inclusive focus on expanding the biogeographic range so that natural adjustments to climate change can proceed without being restrictive.Q.With reference to the passage, the following assumptions have been made: 1. To maintain natural ecosystems, exploitation of natural resources should be completely avoided.2. Not only anthropogenic but also natural reasons can adversely affect ecosystems.3. Loss of endemic diversity leads to the extinction of ecosystems.Which of the above assumptions is/are correct?

Top Courses for UPSCView all

Top Courses for UPSC

What do you understand by Ecological footprint?a)The way in which ecological agents reveal their preferences through ecological activityb)A degree of impairment to an ecosystem, which when surpassed is too severe to allow recovery of that ecosystemc)An index of the area of a productive ecosystem required to produce the resources used and to assimilate the wastes produced by a defined populationd)Non-monetary assessment of ecosystem integrity, health or resilienceCorrect answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer?
Question Description
What do you understand by Ecological footprint?a)The way in which ecological agents reveal their preferences through ecological activityb)A degree of impairment to an ecosystem, which when surpassed is too severe to allow recovery of that ecosystemc)An index of the area of a productive ecosystem required to produce the resources used and to assimilate the wastes produced by a defined populationd)Non-monetary assessment of ecosystem integrity, health or resilienceCorrect answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer? for UPSC 2024 is part of UPSC preparation. The Question and answers have been prepared according to the UPSC exam syllabus. Information about What do you understand by Ecological footprint?a)The way in which ecological agents reveal their preferences through ecological activityb)A degree of impairment to an ecosystem, which when surpassed is too severe to allow recovery of that ecosystemc)An index of the area of a productive ecosystem required to produce the resources used and to assimilate the wastes produced by a defined populationd)Non-monetary assessment of ecosystem integrity, health or resilienceCorrect answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer? covers all topics & solutions for UPSC 2024 Exam. Find important definitions, questions, meanings, examples, exercises and tests below for What do you understand by Ecological footprint?a)The way in which ecological agents reveal their preferences through ecological activityb)A degree of impairment to an ecosystem, which when surpassed is too severe to allow recovery of that ecosystemc)An index of the area of a productive ecosystem required to produce the resources used and to assimilate the wastes produced by a defined populationd)Non-monetary assessment of ecosystem integrity, health or resilienceCorrect answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer?.
Solutions for What do you understand by Ecological footprint?a)The way in which ecological agents reveal their preferences through ecological activityb)A degree of impairment to an ecosystem, which when surpassed is too severe to allow recovery of that ecosystemc)An index of the area of a productive ecosystem required to produce the resources used and to assimilate the wastes produced by a defined populationd)Non-monetary assessment of ecosystem integrity, health or resilienceCorrect answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer? in English & in Hindi are available as part of our courses for UPSC. Download more important topics, notes, lectures and mock test series for UPSC Exam by signing up for free.
Here you can find the meaning of What do you understand by Ecological footprint?a)The way in which ecological agents reveal their preferences through ecological activityb)A degree of impairment to an ecosystem, which when surpassed is too severe to allow recovery of that ecosystemc)An index of the area of a productive ecosystem required to produce the resources used and to assimilate the wastes produced by a defined populationd)Non-monetary assessment of ecosystem integrity, health or resilienceCorrect answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer? defined & explained in the simplest way possible. Besides giving the explanation of What do you understand by Ecological footprint?a)The way in which ecological agents reveal their preferences through ecological activityb)A degree of impairment to an ecosystem, which when surpassed is too severe to allow recovery of that ecosystemc)An index of the area of a productive ecosystem required to produce the resources used and to assimilate the wastes produced by a defined populationd)Non-monetary assessment of ecosystem integrity, health or resilienceCorrect answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer?, a detailed solution for What do you understand by Ecological footprint?a)The way in which ecological agents reveal their preferences through ecological activityb)A degree of impairment to an ecosystem, which when surpassed is too severe to allow recovery of that ecosystemc)An index of the area of a productive ecosystem required to produce the resources used and to assimilate the wastes produced by a defined populationd)Non-monetary assessment of ecosystem integrity, health or resilienceCorrect answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer? has been provided alongside types of What do you understand by Ecological footprint?a)The way in which ecological agents reveal their preferences through ecological activityb)A degree of impairment to an ecosystem, which when surpassed is too severe to allow recovery of that ecosystemc)An index of the area of a productive ecosystem required to produce the resources used and to assimilate the wastes produced by a defined populationd)Non-monetary assessment of ecosystem integrity, health or resilienceCorrect answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer? theory, EduRev gives you an ample number of questions to practice What do you understand by Ecological footprint?a)The way in which ecological agents reveal their preferences through ecological activityb)A degree of impairment to an ecosystem, which when surpassed is too severe to allow recovery of that ecosystemc)An index of the area of a productive ecosystem required to produce the resources used and to assimilate the wastes produced by a defined populationd)Non-monetary assessment of ecosystem integrity, health or resilienceCorrect answer is option 'C'. Can you explain this answer? tests, examples and also practice UPSC tests.
Explore Courses for UPSC exam

Top Courses for UPSC

Explore Courses

Suggested Free Tests

Signup for Free!
Signup to see your scores go up within 7 days! Learn & Practice with 1000+ FREE Notes, Videos & Tests.
10M+ students study on EduRev
Get App
© EduRev
Education Revolution
Follow Us
Signup to see your scores go up within 7 days!
Access 1000+ FREE Docs, Videos and Tests
Takes less than 10 seconds to signup