ch. 8 & 9 vocab sci

food security

food security

access to enough safe, nutritious foods for a healthy lifestyle.

food insecurity

lack of access to nutritious food.

chronic malnutrition

condition where affected individuals do not get enough protein or other key nutrients.

over nutrition

condition in which food energy intake exceeds energy use and causes excess body fat.

subsidy

occurs when the land above an aquifer subsides or sinks

industrialized agriculture

method of agriculture characterized by the large scale operation, monoculture, and the goal of steadily measuring each crops yield.

monoculture

cultivation of a single crop, usually on a large area of land.

traditional agriculture

method of low-input agriculture characterized by the reliance on human labor and draft animals.

polyculture

growing several different crops on the same plot simultaneously with the use of solar energy and natural fertilizers

organic agriculture

growing crops without the use of synthetic pesticides. synthetic inorganic fertilizers, and genetic engineering.

green revolution

process of increasing crop production through industrialized agriculture

aquaculture

growing and harvesting of fish for human use in freshwater ponds, lakes, reservoirs, and paddies.

topsoil

soil underlying all forests, grasslands, and croplands. Stores and purifies water and supplies most of the nutrients needed for plant-growth.

desertification

condition when the productive potential of topsoil falls by 10% or more due to farming practices such as overgrazing, deforestation, and excessive plowing.

soil salinization

gradual accumulation of salts in upper soil laters that can stunt crop growth, lower crop yields, and eventually kill plants and ruin the land.

agrobiodiversity

the genetic variety of animal and plant species used on farms to produce food.

pest

any species that interferes with human welfare by eating society’s food.

synthetic pesticide

chemical used to kill or control populations of organisms considered undesirable

integrated pest management

program designed to reduce crop damage to an economically tolerable level with minimal use of synthetic pesticides by evaluating each crop and its pests as part of an ecosystem.

soil conservation

methods used to reduce topsoil erosion and restore soil fertility

organic fertilizer

organic material such as animal manure, green manure, and compost, applied to cropland as a source of plant nutrients.

synthetic inorganic fertilizer

mixture of organic plant nutrients applied to the soil to restore fertility and increase crop yields.

aquaponics

system of growing crops in water fertilized with the waste of farmed fish or other aquatic animals.

old-growth forest

uncut or regenerated that has not been seriously disturbed by human activities or natural disasters of 200 years or more.

second-growth forest

stand of trees resulting in secondary ecological secession. Develop after the trees in an area have been removed by human activities.

tree plantation

managed forest containing only one or two species of trees that are all the same age.

deforestation

temporary or permanent removal of large expenses of forests for agriculture, settlements, or other uses.

prescribed burn

carefully planned and controlled fire that removes flammable small trees and underbrush in the highest-risk forest areas.

debt-for-nature swap

arrangement in which participating countries act as custodians of protected forest reserves in return for foreign aid or debt relief

conservation concession

strategy in which governments or private conservation organizations pay governments or landowners in other nations to preserve their land’s natural resources for a set amount of time.

rangeland

unfenced grassland in temperature and tropical climates that supplies vegetation for grazing and browsing

pasture

managed grassland or enclosed meadow often planted with domesticated grasses or other vegetation to be grazed by livestock.

overgrazing

too many animals grazing in an area for too long, leading to reduced grass cover, which in turn leads to erosion that compacts soil and reduces its capacity to hold water.

buffer zone

outer zone surrounding a strictly protected inner care of a reserve where local people can extract resources sustainably.

biosphere reserve

area that contains a strictly protected core ecosystem surrounded by a buffer zone where local people can extract resources sustainably.

wilderness area

area that has not been disturbed by humans and that is protected by law from all harmful human activities.

biodiversity hotspot

area rich in highly endangered endemic species.