Unit 5 vocab Flashcards
all the activities that farmers undertake during cultivation of crops such as plowing, sowing, fertilization, harvesting, etc.
Agricultural practices
farming aquatic organisms such as fish, shellfish, and seaweed
Aquaculture
a permeable layer of rock and sediment that contains groundwater
Aquifers
the diversity of life forms in an environment
Biodiversity
a method of harvesting trees that involves removing all or almost all of the trees within an area
Clearcutting
a large indoor or outdoor structure designed for maximum output of high density animal farming used for cattle, dairy cows, hogs, or poultry
Concentrated animal feeding operations (CAFOs)
the purposeful removal of trees from a forested area, usually for farming or logging
Deforestation
the transformation of arable, productive land to desert or unproductive land due to climate change or destructive land use
Desertification
a measure of how much a person consumes, expressed in area of land, representing that person’s impact on world resources
Ecological footprint
allowing animals to wander free rather spend their entire life confined in a small space as part of a CAFO
Free range
an organism produced by copying genes from a species with a desirable trait and inserting them into another species
Genetically modified organisms (GMO)
an agricultural practice that uses a variety of techniques designed to minimize pesticide inputs such as crop rotation and intercropping, the use of pest-resistant crop varieties, and the creation of habitats for predators of pests
Integrated pest management (IPM)
techniques used to water crops including furrow irrigation, flood irrigation, spray irrigation, and drip irrigation
Methods of irrigation
extracting mineral resources from the Earth by mining the ore and separating other minerals, elements, or residual rock away from the sought-after element or mineral
Mining operations
the substantial depletion of fish stocks, often by international fleets of factory ships
Overfishing
allowing livestock to overfeed on dry, open grasslands, denuding the region of vegetation and exposing to wind erosion which makes it difficult for soils to absorb and retain water and nutrients when it rains
Overgrazing
practices used to kill, control, or prevent pests from damaging crops, including both chemical (herbicides and insecticides) and nonchemical practices
Pest-control methods
process that occurs when the small amounts of salts in irrigation water become highly concentrated on the soil surface through evaporation, eventually reaching toxic concentrations that impede plant growth
Salinization
living on Earth in a way that allows us to use its resources without depriving future generations of those resources
Sustainability
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
Sustainable agriculture
an approach to logging that removes trees from the forest in ways that do not unduly affect the viability of other, noncommercial tree species
Sustainable forestry
the maximum amount of a resource that can be harvested without compromising the future availability of that resource
Sustainable yield
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
The Green Revolution
When individuals overconsume a resource at the expense of society.
Tragedy of the commons
urbanized areas that spread into rural areas, removing clear boundaries between the two
Urban sprawl
is the population shift from rural to urban areas
Urbanization
an infiltration of salt water in an area where groundwater pressure has been reduced from extensive drilling of wells
Water infiltration
