EVST Reading Notes Exam 1

poverty

poverty

unable to meet basic needs

consumption

human use of materials

highly developed countries

complex industry, low population growth + high economies (make up 18% of people)

moderately developed

less econ/edu opportunities (ie Mexico, Thailand, Turkey)

less develoiped

unskilled labor econ, little investment, agrarian

affluence

consumption ability based on money

sustainability

meeting current needs w/o compromising future generations

environmental science

interdisc study of human relationships with each other and the environment

ecology

study of interactions among and b/tw organisms and their abiotic environment

biotic

living

abiotic

nonliving

population

groups of individuals of a species

community

group of populations

ecosystem

biotic + abiotic (everything)

landscape

a region including several ecosystems

biosphere

all of the earth

hydrosphere

part of earth covered in water

atmosphere

air/sky

energy

capacity to do work

potential energy

stored ability to do work

kinetic energy

motion

first law of thermodynamics

energy cannot be created or destroyed, only transferred or transformed. It is also known as the law of conservation of energy.

second law of thermodynamics

energy change always looses heat

producers

get energy from sun

consumers

eat other organisms

decomposers

eat dead things

trophic level

each link in food chain progressing upward

Gross Primary Productivity

rate of energy capture

Net Primary Productivity

energy left over/available as food for other organisms

ecosystem services

benefits produced by healthy ecosystems

monoculture

eco simplification in which one plant is cultivated over a large area

sustainable forestry

use + management of forest ecosystem in a balanced + enduring way

selective cutting

harvest mature trees, allow natural regeneration

shelterwood cutting

removal of all mature trees at once

clear cutting

removal of all trees in a forest

deforestation

temporary or permanent clearing of large forests for agriculture or development

rangeland

grasslands used for livestock

carrying capacity

max # of animals that can be sustained by environment

desertification

too much grazing in tropical dry arras overwhelms grassland

undernutrition

deficit in calories/nutrients leaves the body weak and prone to disease

food insecurity

a state in which people lack secure and reliable access to sufficient amounts of food

food security

all people always have access to adequate food (would require elimination of poverty)

industrial agriculture

requires large capital inputs to create a larger harvest with less land + people

subsistence agriculture

traditional producing food for oneself with little surplus

domestication

process of taming wild animals/plants to serve human needs

Green Revolution

more industrial food production worldwide

genetic engineering

manipulation of genes to produce a trait

pesticide

chemical used to kill insects

degredation

reduction of potential ability of land

habitat fragmentation

isolating patches of habitat from each other

broad spectrum pesticides

chemicals that kill other organisms along with target pests

surface water

water that does not seep through soil

runoff

movement of water from rain to bodies of water

groundwater

the supply of freshwater under the surface in aquifers

aquifer depleation

removal of groundwater faster than recharge

salinization

gradual accumulation of salt in soil due to irrigation

microirrigation

irrigation that conserves water by piping directly to crops (aka drip)

water pollution

physical, biological, or chemical change to water that is bad for people and living things

sewage

wastewater from drains including human waste and soaps/detergents

biochemical oxygen demand

amount of O2 micro-orgs need to decompose biological waste

eutrophication

enrichment of a body of water w nutrients, can be caused by industrial fertilizer and sewage

groundwater pollution

pollution from landfills, chemical storage, and agriculture that seeps into aquifers

primary sewage

treatment that removes suspended sediment mechanically

secondary sewage

reduces BOD through microorganisms in treatment

tertiary sewage

advanced treatment that reduces eutrophication

Safe Drinking Water Act (1974)

uniform federal standards that set max contamination levels for water

biodiversity

the # and variety of earth’s organisms

Clean Water Act

legislative goal to reduce pollutants and make waterways safe for recreation

species richness

number of different species in a community

genetic diversity

genetic variation w/in populations

endangered

faces threats to existance

threatened

classification when numbers of a species are dwindling

conservation biology

study of how humans affect organisms and how to protect biodiversity

restoration ecology

study of the historical environment to try and bring it back to its original state

sustainable development

economic growth that meets needs of present without taking from the future

sustainable consumption

goods and services that meet needs and improve quality of life and minimize resource use (goal → eradicate poverty)

voluntary simplicity

actively choosing less consumption for own happiness and sustainability goals

environmental ethics

a field of applied ethics for environmental responsability

environmental worldview

view of how environment works and our place in it

western worldview

human centered and utilitarian, frontier attitude with instrumental value

deep ecology worldview

harmony and spiritual respect for the world + environment

environmental justice

rights of every citizen to protection in the environment

carrying capacity

max population sustained by environment

municipal solid waste

waste from commercial and institutional facilities including homes, schools, restaurants, prisons

non-municipal solid waste

waste from industry, agriculture, and mining

sanitary landfill

most common, trash is compacted and buried

leachate

liquid that seeps out of landfills and infiltrates water sources

source reduction

products designed and made to decrease waste

hazardous waste

discarded chemicals that threaten human health

CERCLA

holds polluters accountable and makes a superfund to address environmental damages

RCRA

identifies hazardous waste

superfund program

under CERCLA, investigates polluted areas and remediates, very little money available

sacrifice zones

places deemed less valuable; able to be offered up for waste disposal

surface mining

used to extract minerals near surface (includes strip mining)

subsurface mining

deep underground mineral extraction

acid mine drainage

pollution from sulfuric acid and other toxins that wash away into streams

fluidized-bed combustion

clean coal tech in which crushed coal is mixed with limestone to neutralize acid compounds

nuclear energy

energy released during fission/fusion

enrichment

process by which uranium is refined to U 235 for use in nuclear energy

nuclear reactor

initiates and maintanes controlled nuclear fission