unit 5 Flashcards
croplands
produce grains
rangelands
produces meat from grazing livestock
hydroponics
growth of food without soil, water infused with nutrients
gmos
artificially altered crops, easier to grow and higher yields
inorganic commerical fertilizers
inexpensive, easy to apply to large fields, only have NPK
furrow irrigation
furrows cut between fields and filled with water, 33% water lost
flood irrigation
water diverted to field, 20% water lost
spray irrigation
pumping groundwater into spray nozzles, 25% water lsot
drip irrigation
hoses with holes spray water directly on roots, 5% water lost
aquaculture
growing and harvesting aquatic plants and animals for consumption
world food security
amount of grain available per person
loss of world grain stock
warmer temps, drought, ethanol production, grain feeding livestock, more meat consumed in developed countries
marasmus
low in calories, low in protein
kwashiokor
enough calories, low in protein
overnutrition
energy intake (food) is greater than energy expenditure
malnutrition
dietary imbalances, nutritional deficiencies, over or under weight
industrialized agriculture
lots of energy, water, fertilizer, pesticides used, produces monoculture crops or livestock
commercial fertlizers
overnutrition/eutrophication in water
pesticides
soil structure changes, retains less water, loss of soil fertility
plantation agriculture
cash crops or large monoculture plantations
intensive agriculture
human labor, fertilizer and water get higher yield, for survival and income
subsistence agriculture
human labor, producing enough for survival
benefits of irrigation types
usually easy and more precise in water placement, also can add nutrients
disadvantages of irrigation types
water lost to evaporation, risk of soil erosion and salinization, use of machines
first and second green revolutions
developed, developing, introduced mechanization in agriculture, fertilizer and pesticides, higher crop yields
third green revolution
gmos, genetically engineering crop and livestock
domestication on genetic diversity
desirable and successful traits favored, lose genetic diversity (less variety)
advantages of gmos
less fertilizer and water needed, faster growth, more pest and disease resistance, spoil slower, higher yields
disadvantages of gmos
toxins, lower nutrition, pests become more resistant, lower genetic diversity
cafos
animals ready for slaughter faster, crowded, low-quality feed, lots of organic waste, less expensive
free-range farming
animals graze on grass, no antibotic/chemical use, less organic waste, large land required, expensive
disadvantages of free-range farming
erosion, animal waste in water, world grains feed livestock, use lots of water, degrades land quickly
sustainable meat production
don’t go over carrying capacity, refurnish bare areas, stop land use around water sources, raise animals that consume less grain
trawler fishing
net dragged along sea floor, damages habitats
purse-seine fishing
circular net dropped, anything in net is captured
draft-net fishing
net dropped in ocean, fish get hooked by gills
long-line fishing
line of fish hooks, fish eat bait and are caught
fish farming
controlled environment to grow fish, ex. cage
fish ranching
fish in captivity, released to wild, harvested when return to breed
aquaculture problems
overfishing, bycatch, habitats destroyed, dense populations = risk of disease, reduce genetic variability, fish can compete or mate with wild fish
soil erosion
surface litter and topsoil moved around by water or wind
how humans increase soil erosion
vehicles, logging, farming, construction, overgrazing livestock
effects of soil erosion
poor soil fertility, eroded soil in water causes water pollution
nutrient mineral depletion
positive feedbakc loop, plants harvested = nutrients removed from soil = fewer plants can be supported in future
salinization
irrigation from groundwater causes salt buildup in soil
solutions to salinization
reduce irrigation, salt tolerant crops, flush soil, underground drainage systems, 2-5 years of untouched soil
desertification
soil becomes dry and falls due to drought, erosion, salinization, and soil compaction
solutions to desertification
low/no-till famring, rotate grazing, plant trees, check irrigation methods
waterlogging
water trapped under surface, can’t percolate down, plants roots salinized
contour cropping
crop trenches not in straight lines
terracing
produces level area for better farming and less soil erosion
strip cropping
legume planted near/nect to to add nitrogen
agroforestry
trees planted between crops to minimize wind erosion
shelterbelts
trees planted around edges of fields to break up wind
organic fertilizer
slower, lasts longer, made from natural components
inorganic fertilizer
plant soluble but leaches out to groundwater, uses different chemical elements
soil conservation act
conserve natural resources on private land
food security act
help farmers develop conservation plan for farms
conservation reserve program
gov funded, pays farmers to stop planting crops on highly erodible land
coevolution
plants and pests evolve to take each other down
pesticides
chemicals to kill or control populations of pests
ddt
cheap, effective, kills anything (including beneficial species)
pros of pesticides
increase food supply, increase profits for farmers, work fast, becoming safer
cons of pesticides
pesticide treadmill/coevolution, travel around through air, harm wildlife and humans
fifra
requires EPA approval for pesticides and sets tolerance level for consumers
food, drug, cosmetics act
established legal and illegal levels of pesticides on processed foods
delaney clause
no tested cancer causing substances in processed foods
food quality protection act
established pesticide residue limit
economic threshold
point at which economic losses of pesticides outway gains of pesticides
ipm
farmer develops pesticide and pest control program, want to reduce crop damage to economically tolerable level
benefits of development
reduce pollution, reduce poverty, lower infant mortality rate, reduce low wages and poor work conditions
disadvantages of development
high pollution volume, environmentally disconnected
how do developed and developing countries suffer sustainably
resource depletion, renewable overuse, tragedy of the commons
ipat model
population x consumption per person x technological impact per unit of consumption = environmental impact of pop
ecological footprint
amount of productive land, freshwater, and ocean required to supply a person with necesities to live sustainably
overburden
layer of rock and soil on top of mineral deposit, removed in surface mining
open pit mining
machines dig deep pit to reach ore
dredging
chain buckets and draglines srape up underwater mineral deposits
area strip mining
overburden stripped away, powershovel digs to ore
contour strip mining
terraces cut, overburden removed, poweshovel extracts ore
mountaintop removal
explosives remove mountaintop
tailings
mineral and material residue left over from mining
smcra
requires mining operations to have complete plans before beginning
environmental effects of mining
disrupts land surface, acid mine drainage, subsidence, air and water pollution
urbanization on water
grass covered by concrete = less water can infilitrate = becomes runoff
urbanization on carbon cycle
increase fossil fuel consumption = global warming, increases air pollution
urban sprawl
population changes from high density to lower density suburbs due to infrastructure and road construction
negatives of urban sprawl
more resource and energy used, more flooding, more pollution, farmland relocates to wild areas
clearcutting
all trees cut down, sunlight available
problems with clearcutting
lots of erosion = loss of soil fertility, increased flooding/runoff from less filtration, decrease in biodiversity
seed tree cutting
most trees cut down, decrease in genetic diversity
shelterwood cutting
mature trees removed, largest trees stay to shelter newer trees
selective cutting
mature trees cut individually or in small clusters, natural regeneration
prescribed fires
remove pests, remove underbrush and dead material, encourage new growth
