Chapter 1 Flashcards
Biodiversity
The variety of life on Earth
Conservation view
Emphasizes careful management of natural resources
Ecology
The study of our interations with the world around us
Ecosystem
The balance of interactions between the Earth and the living things which it supports
Ecosystem services
Earth’s natural processes which maintain resources (ex: carbon cycle)
Environment
A set of ecological conditions which influence life forms in that domain
Environmental degradation
Misuse of Earth’s resources resulting in the loss of these resources
Environmentalism
The social movement in favor of the preservation of the Earth around us
Environmental worldview
The way a person views human relationships with the world around us
Exponential growth
The rapid increase in a quantifiable variable
Inexhaustable resource
A resoruce with no forseeable limit
Natural capital
The relative value of a resource based on its usefulness
Natural resource
A resource found on the Earth that can be used by humans for a specific purpose
Nonrenewable
A resource which cannot regenerate for future use within the forseeable future
Nutrient cycling
The idea that nutrients are transferred, not lost, and simply change form. Evenually returns nutrient to its original state
Nutrients
Essential, life-sustaining properties of different resources
Point-source
Pollution from a definite, individual polluter. Easier to stop
Pollution
Waste (air, water, or general) that enters the environment and alters its surroundings. Hard to clean up
Preservation view
The view in favor of allocating untouched land
Renewable resource
Can be regenerated or reused within a short timespan. Resource will not be permenently lost
Sustainability
A way of living which does not exhaust the environment
Non-point source
Not easy to point out. Many different sources. Hard to control
