Human ImpactChapter 6

Vocab ONLY

A necessity of life (resource) which can NOT be replenished by natural means; Ex: fossil fuels

Non-renewable resource

Wearing away of the surface soil by water and wind

erosion

Farming strategy in which large fields are planted with a single crop variety year after year

monoculture

a necessity of life (resource) which can regenerate quickly and that is replaceable; Ex: trees, water

Renewable resource

Program in which endangered species are allowed to breed in zoos until numbers increase and then are returned to their natural habitats

Captive breeding

Forests that have never been cut that provide unique habitats for wildlife

Old growth forests OR “virgin” forests

Uppermost layer of soil that contains most of the nutrients and is susceptible to erosion

topsoil

Wavelength of sunlight that causes sunburn, skin cancer, and cataracts whichthe ozone layer protects us from

Ultra violet (UV)

The development of highly productive crop strains and the use of modern agriculture techniques to increase yields of food crops

Green revolution

Sustainable development

Way of using natural resources without depleting them and of providing for human needs without causing long term harm to the environment

A process caused by a combination of poor farming practices, overgrazing, and drought that turns productive land in areas with dry climates into deserts

desertification

A mixture of chemicals (smoke + fog) that occurs as a gray-brown haze in the atmosphere

smog

Harmful material that can enter the biosphere through land, water, or air

pollutant

the sum total of the variety of organisms in the biosphere; It is a measure of the health of an ecosystem

biodiversity

term used to refer to a species that has died out

extinct

Splitting of ecosystems into small areas

Habitat fragmentation

a species whose population size is rapidly declining and will become extinct if the trend continues without intervention

endangered

increasing concentration a harmful substance in organisms at higher trophic levels in a food chain or web

Biological magnification

a species likely to become endangered if not protected

threatened

Pesticide used to kill mosquitoes that concentrated in prey birds (like eagles) and caused them to lay eggs with weak shells

DDT

plants or animals that have migrated or been introduced into places where they are not native and for which there are no natural predators or parasites to control their population

Invasive species

the wise management of natural resources, including the preservation of habitats and wildlife

conservation

Areas containing endangered ecosystems that could benefit most from efforts and $ to preserve them Hot spots

Atmospheric layer in which ozone (03) gas is relatively concentrated which protects us from the sun’s ultra-violet radiation

Ozone layer

Rain containing nitric and sulfuric acids caused by burning fossil fuels

Acid rain

Increase in the average temperatures of the Earth

Global warming

Fuels such as oil, coal, or natural gas produced by the decay of dead organic matter that cause many environmental problems such as global warming and acid rain Fossil fuels

Illegal hunting of animals

poaching

Governmental body whose job it is to monitor and enforce environmental regulations, provide education on environmental issues, conduct environmental research, and provide funding for environmental programs

Environmental Protection Agency(EPA)

Agreement signed by almost 200 countries, including the United States, which agreed to reduce (and eventually stop) the use of ozone depleting chemicals.

Montreal Protocol

The giant aquifer that supplies water for drinking and agricultural irrigation to much of the farming midwest

Ogallala

Act passed to protect endangered species thatprevents importation into the United States of anything that comes from an endangered animal

Convention on International Trade inEndangered Species (CITES) Act

Agreement, aimed at reducing global warming, which has been ratified by 104 nations that asks participants to reduce by 2012 their greenhouse gas emissions to a percentage of their 1990 emission levels. (The President Bush has questioned some of the details of the treaty and the US has not ratified it)

Kyoto Accord

Chemicals containing chloro- and fluorocarbonsused in aerosol cans and refrigerants thatcause a depletion of the ozone layer

CFC’s

Area in which the addition of an abundance of limiting nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus cause an algal bloom, blocking sunlight, and causing the death of organisms below

Dead zone

Tell where we could see this problem in the United States

Gulf of Mexico where Mississippi River empties

Natural process in which atmospheric gases trap energy from sunlight as heat

Greenhouse effect

the scientific study of interactions among organisms and between organisms and their environment

ecology

All the organisms that live in a place together with their nonliving or physical environment

ecosystem

an immediate increase in the amount of algae and other producers that results from the addition of a large amount of limiting nutrient

Algal bloom