Unit 5 Vocabulary Part One

agricultural practices

free range grazing, crop rotation, CAFOs, intercropping, etc

aquaculture

the production of aquatic organisms in controlled environments

aquifers

groundwater deposits for human use

biodiversity

variety within a species/ecosystem

clearcutting

cutting down trees and replacing them with new trees

CAFOs

densely crowded method where animals are fed grain to raise them as quickly as possible

deforestation

the practice of cutting down trees for wood

desertification

process of vegetation in drylands disappears

ecological footprints

measurement of environmental consumption

free range

animals graze on grass and grow at a natural rate without hormones

GMOs

species that have been modified to contain certain traits in order to increase yield/profit

IPM

using a variety of pest control methods that minimize environmental disruption and pesticide use

methods of irrigation

furrow irrigation, flood irrigation, spray irrigation, drip irrigation

mining operations

surface and subsurface

overfishing

fish being caught at an amount that cannot be replaced

overgrazing

too many animals grazing can remove all plants and lead to erosion

pest-control methods

pesticides, intercropping, crop rotation

salinization

amount of salt present in a substance

sustainability

consuming at a rate at which it can be replaced

sustainable agriculture

farming at a rate at which it can be replaced

sustainable forestry

cutting down trees at which trees can grow back

sustainable yield

amount of resources that can be produced while being able to be replaced

green revolution

shift from small farms to large, industrial-scale agribusiness

tragedy of the commons

the tendency of a shared, limited resource to become depleted because people act from self-interest for short-term gain

urban sprawl

rapid expansion of urban and suburban areas on undeveloped land

urbanization

population shift from rural to urban areas

water infiltration

process of water entering the soil