NEW Unit 5B Forestry, Mining, and Misc.

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Clearcutting

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37 Terms

1

Clearcutting

a timber harvesting technique that involves removing all or almost all the trees within an area

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2

Crown fire

Extremely hot and destructive forest fire that burns ground vegetation and treetops.

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3

Deforestation

The removal of trees without replacing them.

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4

depletion time

The time it takes to use up a certain proportion (usually 80%) of the reserves of a mineral at a given rate of use

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5

Ecological Footprint

A measure of how much an individual consumes, expressed in area of land or number of earths.

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6

gangue

the commercially valueless material in which ore is found.

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7

geology

the study of the origin, history, and structure of Earth

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8

high-grade ore

Ore that contains a fairly large amount of the desired mineral.

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9

Impervious Surface

Any surface through which water can NOT seep down into the ground

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10

Infiltration

Downward movement of water through soil.

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11

low-grade ore

Ore containing a small amount of a desired mineral.

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12

mineral

a naturally occurring, inorganic solid that has a crystal structure and a definite chemical composition

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13

mountaintop removal

Type of surface mining that uses explosives, massive shovels, and even larger machinery called draglines to remove the top of a mountain to expose seams of coal underneath a mountain.

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14

Old Growth

Forests that have not been cut - or not in a very long time. They generally include more large trees, canopy layers, standing snags, native species, and dead organic matter.

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15

open-pit mining

A mining technique that uses a large hole in the ground, visible from the surface of Earth.

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16

ore

Rock that contains a metal or economically useful mineral

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17

overburden

Layer of soil and rock overlying a mineral deposit.

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18

Prescribed burn

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

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19

reserves

minerals that have not been accessed yet.

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20

second growth

Forests that have been cut.

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21

Selective Cutting

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

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22

smelting

The process by which ore is melted to separate the useful metal from other elements.

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23

Slag

waste residue from smelting metal.

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24

spoil

a pile of overburden that has been moved

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25

strip mining

involves the removal of the Earth's surface all the way down to the level of the mineral seam.

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26

subsurface mining

Extraction of a metal ore or fuel resource such as coal from a deep underground deposit.

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27

Surface fire

Forest fire that burns only undergrowth and leaf litter on the forest floor.

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28

surface mining

The extraction of mineral and energy resources near Earth's surface by first removing the soil, subsoil, and overlying rock strata.

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29

Sustainable Yield

Highest rate at which a potentially renewable resource can be used indefinitely without reducing its available supply.

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30

Tailings

Piles of rock and other waste materials removed as impurities when waste mineral material is separated from the metal in an ore.

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31

Tragedy of the Commons

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

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32

Tree plantation

planted stands of a particular tree species

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33

Urban Sprawl

The process of urban areas expanding outwards, usually in the form of suburbs, and developing over fertile agricultural land.

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34

coal ash

waste from coal mining that contains mercury, arsenic and lead

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35

Urbanization

Movement of people from rural areas to cities

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36

Pine beetle

Warmer, milder summers cause this insect to feed on the bark of conifers, killing the trees (climate change alters forests!)

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37

dutch Elm disease

One of several fungi destroying large numbers of deciduous trees

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