apes sem. 1 vocab

Aquifer

A permeable layer of rock and sediment that contains groundwater.

Unconfined aquifer

An aquifer made of porous rock covered by soil out of which water can easily flow.

Confined aquifer

An aquifer surrounded by a layer of impermeable rock or clay that impedes water flow.

Water table

The uppermost level at which the water in a given area fully saturates rock or soil.

Groundwater recharge

A process by which water percolates through the soil and works its way into an aquifer.

Spring

A natural source of water formed when water from an aquifer percolates up to the ground surface.

Artesian well

A well created by drilling a hole into a confined aquifer.

Cone of depression

An area lacking groundwater due to rapid withdrawal by a well.

Saltwater intrusion

An infiltration of salt water in an area where groundwater pressure has been reduced from extensive drilling of wells.

Floodplain

The land adjacent to a river.

Impermeable surface

Pavement or buildings that do not allow water penetration.

Levee

An enlarged bank built up on each side of a river.

Dike

A structure built to prevent ocean waters from flooding adjacent land.

Dam

A barrier that runs across a river or stream to control the flow of water.

Reservoir

The water body created by damming a river or stream.

Fish ladder

A stair-like structure that allows migrating fish to get around a dam.

Aqueduct

A canal or ditch used to carry water from one location to another.

Desalination

The process of removing the salt from salt water. (Also known as "desalinization.")

Distillation

A process of desalination in which water is boiled and the resulting steam is captured and condensed to yield pure water.

Reverse osmosis

A process of desalination in which water is forced through a thin semipermeable membrane at high pressure.

Water footprint

The total daily per capita use of fresh water.

Hydroponic agriculture

The cultivation of plants in greenhouse conditions by immersing roots in a nutrientrich solution.

Tiered water-pricing system

A water allocation system that charges rates that increase with the amount of water consumed.

Xeriscaping

A style of landscaping that removes waterintensive vegetation from lawns and replaces it with more water-efficient native landscaping.

Gray water

Wastewater from baths, showers, bathroom sinks and washing machines.

Contaminated water

Wastewater from toilets, kitchen sinks, and dishwashers.

Undernutrition

The condition in which not enough calories are ingested to maintain health.

Malnourished

Having a diet that lacks the correct balance of proteins, carbohydrates, vitamins, and minerals.

Food security

A condition in which people have access to sufficient, safe, and nutritious food that meets their dietary needs for an active and healthy life.

Food insecurity

A condition in which people do not have adequate access to food.

Famine

The condition in which food insecurity is so extreme that large numbers of deaths occur in a given area over a relatively short period.

Anemia

A deficiency of iron.

Overnutrition

Ingestion of too many calories and a lack of balance of foods and nutrients.

Meat

Livestock or poultry consumed as food.

Industrial agriculture

Agriculture that applies the techniques of mechanization and standardization to the production of food. (Also known as "agribusiness.")

Agribusiness

See "industrial agriculture."

Energy subsidy

The fossil fuel energy and human energy input per calorie of food produced.

Green Revolution

A shift in agricultural practices in the twentieth century that included new management techniques, mechanization, fertilization, irrigation, and improved crop varieties, that resulted in increased food output.

Economies of scale

The observation that average costs of production fall as output increases.

Waterlogging

A form of soil degradation that occurs when soil remains under water for prolonged periods.

Salinization

A form of soil degradation that occurs when the small amount of salts in irrigation water becomes highly concentrated on the soil surface through evaporation.

Organic fertilizer

Fertilizer composed of organic matter from plants and animals.

Synthetic fertilizer

Fertilizer produced commercially, normally with the use of fossil fuels. (Also known as "inorganic fertilizer.")

Inorganic fertilizer

See "synthetic fertilizer."

Monocropping

An agricultural method that utilizes large plantings of a single species or variety.

Pesticide

A substance, either natural or synthetic, that kills or controls organisms that people consider pests.

Insecticide

A pesticide that targets species of insects and other invertebrates that consume crops.

Herbicide

A pesticide that targets plant species that compete with crops.

Broad-spectrum pesticide

A pesticide that kills many different types of pest.

Selective pesticide

A pesticide that targets a narrow range of organisms. (Also known as "narrow-spectrum pesticide.")

Narrow-spectrum pesticide

See "selective pesticide."

Persistent pesticide

A pesticide that remains in the environment for a long time.

Nonpersistent pesticide

A pesticide that breaks down rapidly, usually in weeks or months.

Pesticide resistance

A trait possessed by certain individuals that are exposed to a pesticide and survive.

Pesticide treadmill

A cycle of pesticide development, followed by pest resistance, followed by new pesticide development.

Concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO)

A large indoor or outdoor structure designed for maximum output.

Aquaculture

Farming aquatic organisms such as fish, shellfish, and seaweeds.

Fishery

A commercially harvestable population of fish within a particular ecological region.

Fishery collapse

The decline of a fish population by 90 percent or more.

Bycatch

The unintentional catch of nontarget species while fishing.

Shifting agriculture

An agricultural method in which land is cleared and used for a few years until the soil is depleted of nutrients.

Soil compaction

A process where repeated trampling by humans, machinery, or animals causes a compaction of soil and a reduction in pore space.

Desertification

The transformation of arable, productive land to desert or unproductive land due to climate change or destructive land use.

Nomadic grazing

The feeding of herds of animals by moving them to seasonally productive feeding grounds, often over long distances.

Sustainable agriculture

Agriculture that fulfills the need for food and fiber while enhancing the quality of the soil, minimizing the use of nonrenewable resources, and allowing economic viability for the farmer.

Intercropping

An agricultural method in which two or more crop species are planted in the same field at the same time to promote a synergistic interaction.

Crop rotation

An agricultural technique in which crop species in a field are rotated from season to season.

Agroforestry

An agricultural technique in which trees and vegetables are intercropped.

Contour plowing

An agricultural technique in which plowing and harvesting are done parallel to the topographic contours of the land.

Perennial plant

A plant that lives for multiple years.

Annual plant

A plant that lives only one season.

No-till agriculture

An agricultural method in which farmers do not turn the soil between seasons as a means of reducing topsoil erosion.

Integrated pest management (IPM)

An agricultural practice that uses a variety of techniques designed to minimize pesticide inputs.

Organic agriculture

The production of crops in a way that sustains or improves the soil without the use of synthetic pesticides or fertilizers.

Individual transferable quota (ITQ)

A fishery management program in which individual fishers are given a total allowable catch of fish in a season that they can either catch or sell.

Tragedy of the commons

The tendency of a shared, limited resource to become depleted if it is not regulated in some way.

Externality

The cost or benefit of a good or service that is not included in the purchase price of that good or service or otherwise accounted for.

Maximum sustainable yield (MSY)

The maximum amount of a renewable resource that can be harvested without compromising the future availability of that resource.

Resource conservation ethic

The belief that people should maximize use of resources, based on the greatest good for everyone.

Multiple-use lands

A U.S. classification used to designate lands that may be used for recreation, grazing, timber harvesting, and mineral extraction.

Rangeland

Grassland primarily used for grazing cattle.

Forest

Land dominated by trees and other woody vegetation and sometimes used for commercial logging.

Clear-cutting

A method of harvesting trees that involves removing all or almost all of the trees within an area.

Selective cutting

The method of harvesting trees that involves the removal of single trees or a relatively small number of trees from the larger forest.

Ecologically sustainable forestry

An approach to removing trees from forests in ways that do not unduly affect the viability of other noncommercial trees.

Tree plantation

A large area typically planted with a single rapidly growing tree species.

Prescribed burn

A fire deliberately set under controlled conditions in order to reduce the accumulation of dead biomass on a forest floor.

National wildlife refuge

A federal public land managed for the primary purpose of protecting wildlife.

National wilderness area

An area set aside with the intent of preserving a large tract of intact ecosystem or landscape.

National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA)

A 1969 U.S. federal act that mandates an environmental assessment of all projects involving federal money or federal permits.

Environmental impact statement (EIS)

A document outlining the scope and purpose of a development project, describing the environmental context, suggesting alternative approaches to the project, and analyzing the environmental impact of each alternative.

Environmental mitigation plan

A plan that outlines how a developer will address concerns raised by a project's impact on the environment.

Endangered Species Act

A 1973 U.S. act designed to protect species from extinction.

Suburb

An area surrounding a metropolitan center, with a comparatively low population density.

Exurb

An area similar to a suburb, but unconnected to any central city or densely populated area.

Urban sprawl

Urbanized areas that spread into rural areas, removing clear boundaries between the two.

Urban blight

The degradation of the built and social environments of the city that often accompanies and accelerates migration to the suburbs.

Highway Trust Fund

A U.S. federal fund that pays for the construction and maintenance of roads and highways.

Induced demand

The phenomenon in which an increase in the supply of a good causes demand to grow.

Zoning

A planning tool used to separate industry and business from residential neighborhoods.