Unit 5 Flashcards
Subsistence farming
Farming for consumption by the farming family and maybe a few neighbors.
Reserve
In resource management, the known quantity of a resource that can be economically recovered.
Nonpersistent pesticides
Pesticide that breaks down relatively rapidly, usually in weeks or months, and have fewer long-term effects but because they must be applied more often their overall environmental impact is not always lower than that of persistent pesticides.
Water footprint
Total daily per capita use of fresh water for a country or the world.
Tragedy of the commons
The tendency of a shared, limited resource to become depleted if it is not regulated in some way.
Pesticide resistance
A trait possessed by certain individuals that are exposed to a pesticide and survive.
Furrow irrigation
A form of irrigation where the farmer digs trenches, or furrows, along the crop rows, and fills them with water.
Bycatch
The unintentional catch of nontarget species while fishing.
Strip cropping
An agricultural method of planting crops with different spacing and rooting characteristics in alternating sets of rows to prevent soil erosion.
Persistent pesticides
A pesticide that remains in the environment for years to decades.
Limestone
A calcium carbonated sedimentary rock that has been ground up or crushed for easy application as fertilizer.
Flood irrigation
A form of irrigation where an entire field is flooded with water.
Exurbs
An area similar to a suburb, but unconnected to any central city or densely populated area.
Groundwater recharge
The process by which water from precipitation percolates through the soil into groundwater.
Crop rotation
A crop-planting strategy in which different types of crop species are planted from season to season or year to year on the same plot of land.
Crustal abundance
The average concentration of an element in Earth’s crust.
Agroforestry
An agricultural technique in which trees and vegetables are intercropped.
Slash-and-burn agriculture (Shifting agriculture)
An agricultural method in which land is cleared and farmed for only a few years until the soil is depleted of nutrients.
Selective pesticide (Narrow-spectrum pesticide)
A pesticide that targets a narrow range of organisms.
Industrial agriculture (Agribusiness)
Agriculture that applies the techniques of mechanization and standardization to the production of food.
Waterlogging
A form of soil degradation that occurs when soil remains under water for prolonged periods.
Concentrated animal feeding operation (CAFO)
A large indoor or outdoor structure designed for maximum occupancy of animals and maximum output of meat.
Strip mining
The removal of overlying vegetation and “strips” of soil and rock to expose underlying ore.
Subsurface mining
Mining techniques used when the desired resource is more than 100 m (328 feet) below the surface of Earth.