1. Human Impact Chapter 6 Vocab ONLY

2. Non-renewable resource
A necessity of life (resource) which can NOT be replenished by natural means; Ex: fossil fuels
Non-renewable resource
Wearing away of the surface soil by water
and wind
erosion

3. monoculture Renewable resource
Farming strategy in which large fields are planted with a single crop variety year after year
monoculture
a necessity of life (resource) which can
regenerate quickly and that is replaceable;
Ex: trees, water
Renewable resource

4. Program in which endangered species are allowed to breed in zoos until numbers increase and then are returned to their natural habitats
Captive breeding
Forests that have never been cut that
provide unique habitats for wildlife
Old growth forests OR “virgin” forests

5. Uppermost layer of soil that contains most of the nutrients and is susceptible to erosion
topsoil
Wavelength of sunlight that causes sunburn, skin cancer, and cataracts which the ozone layer protects us from
Ultra violet (UV)

6. Green revolution Sustainable development
The development of highly productive crop strains and the use of modern agriculture techniques to increase yields of food crops
Green revolution
Way of using natural resources without depleting
them and of providing for human needs without
causing long term harm to the environment
Sustainable development

7. desertification smog A mixture of chemicals (smoke + fog)
A process caused by a combination of poor farming practices, overgrazing, and drought that turns productive land in areas with dry climates into deserts
desertification
A mixture of chemicals (smoke + fog)
that occurs as a gray-brown haze in
the atmosphere
smog

8. pollutant biodiversity
Harmful material that can enter the biosphere through land, water, or air
pollutant
the sum total of the variety of organisms in
the biosphere; It is a measure of the health
of an ecosystem
biodiversity

9. extinct term used to refer to a species that has died out
Splitting of ecosystems into small areas
Habitat fragmentation

10. endangered Biological magnification increasing concentration a harmful
a species whose population size is rapidly declining and will become extinct if the trend continues without intervention
endangered
increasing concentration a harmful
substance in organisms at higher
trophic levels in a food chain or web
Biological magnification

11. Pesticide used to kill mosquitoes that
a species likely to become endangered if not protected
threatened
Pesticide used to kill mosquitoes that
concentrated in prey birds (like eagles)
and caused them to lay eggs with
weak shells
DDT

12. Invasive species conservation
plants or animals that have migrated or been introduced into places where they are not native and for which there are no natural predators or parasites to control their population
Invasive species
the wise management of natural resources,
including the preservation of habitats and wildlife
conservation

13. Areas containing endangered ecosystems that could benefit most from efforts and $ to preserve them
Hot spots
Atmospheric layer in which ozone (03) gas
is relatively concentrated which protects
us from the sun’s ultra-violet radiation
Ozone layer

14. Acid rain Global warming
Rain containing nitric and sulfuric acids caused by burning fossil fuels
Acid rain
Increase in the average temperatures of
the Earth
Global warming

15. Illegal hunting of animals
Fuels such as oil, coal, or natural gas produced by the decay of dead organic matter that cause many environmental problems such as global warming and acid rain
Fossil fuels
Illegal hunting of animals
poaching

16. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Governmental body whose job it is to monitor and enforce environmental regulations, provide education on environmental issues, conduct environmental research, and provide funding for environmental programs
Environmental Protection Agency (EPA)
Agreement signed by almost 200 countries,
including the United States, which agreed to reduce
(and eventually stop) the use of ozone depleting
chemicals.
Montreal Protocol

17. The giant aquifer that supplies water for drinking and agricultural irrigation to much of the farming midwest
Ogallala
Act passed to protect endangered species that
prevents importation into the United States of
anything that comes from an endangered animal
Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species (CITES) Act

18. Agreement, aimed at reducing global warming, which has been ratified by 104 nations that asks participants to reduce by 2012 their greenhouse gas emissions to a percentage of their 1990 emission levels. (The President Bush has questioned some of the details of the treaty and the US has not ratified it)
Kyoto Accord
Chemicals containing chloro- and fluorocarbons used in aerosol cans and refrigerants that
cause a depletion of the ozone layer
CFC’s

19. Area in which the addition of an abundance of limiting nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus cause an algal bloom, blocking sunlight, and causing the death of organisms below
Dead zone
Tell where we could see this problem in the United States
Gulf of Mexico where Mississippi River empties

20. Natural process in which atmospheric gases trap energy from sunlight as heat
Greenhouse effect
the scientific study of interactions among
organisms and between organisms
and their environment
ecology

21. All the organisms that live in a place together with their nonliving or physical environment
ecosystem
an immediate increase in the amount of algae
and other producers that results from the addition
of a large amount of limiting nutrient
Algal bloom