Espm Definitions, Concepts, Etc.

Front 1

Agreocology

Back 1

a scientific discipline that uses ecological theory to study, design, manage and evaluate agricultural systems that are productive but also resource conserving.

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Biodiversity

Back 2

describes the number, variety, and variability of living organisms, and is applied to genes, species, and ecosystems.

Front 3

Biomagnification

Back 3

the increase in concentration of a substance, such as the pesticide DDT, that occurs in a food chain as a consequence of food chain energetics and low rate of excretion of the substance.

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Green Revolution

Back 4

a significant increase in agricultural productivity resulting from the introduction of high-yield varieties of grains, the use of pesticides, and improved management techniques.
Pair with monoculture farming.

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Greenhouse Effect

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the phenomenon whereby the earth's atmosphere traps solar radiation, caused by the presence in the atmosphere of gases such as carbon dioxide, water vapor, and methane that allow incoming sunlight to pass through but absorb heat radiated back from the earth's surface.

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Indicator Species

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a species whose presence, absence, or relative well being in a given environment is indicative of the health of its ecosystem as a whole; a species used to locate another, less visible species. i.e.- snails in Strawberry creek.

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Keystone Species

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those with major effects of ecological functions and whose elimination would effect many other members of the biological community. Prairie dogs and bison. Usually a smaller animal in the ecosystem.

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Monoculture Farming

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the agricultural practice of producing or growing one single crop over a wide area.

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Organic Agriculture

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an ecological production management system that promotes and enhances biodiversity, biological cycles, and soil biological activity. It is based on minimal use of off-farm inputs and on management practices that maintain ecological harmony.

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Reductionism

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reduction of genetic variability; reduced the types of food we eat into rice, wheat, soy, and corn

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Umbrella Species

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require large blocks of relatively undisturbed habitat to maintain viable populations. Saving this habitat also benefits other species. i.e.- spotted owl, tiger, and gray wolf; polar bear.

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Utilitarianism

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the ethical theory that all action should be directed toward achieving the greatest happiness for the greatest number of people. i.e.- Pinchot

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Carbon cycle, with principal storage components and transfers

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the biogeochemical cycle by which carbon is exchanged among the biosphere, pedosphere, geosphere, hydrosphere, and atmosphere of the Earth.
*The largest non-fossil fuel reservoir of C stored as
organic matter is soil humus. *The largest reservoir of C stored as carbonate is the ocean.
*Carbon dioxide is transferred through plants that turn it into organic matter which is then consumed by other organisms.

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Pros and cons of renewable energy sources

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Pros:
• We can make a big difference if we drive just 25% less
• Wind – most efficient conversion to mechanical energy
Cons:
• Generate carbon dioxide
• Wasted energy
• Don’t know how to go about putting CO2 underground
• Need large amount of land area for solar energy
• Solar energy is intermittent; sun doesn’t always shine
• Wind is intermittent
• Windmills are big and kill birds
• Corn and soybeans – yields are relatively low; large area of land required for large-scale production

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Pros and cons of monoculture farming

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Pros:
• Meets growing world food demand for past 40 years
• High yields, with high short-term profits and low consumer cost (6% of disposable income)
• Amenable to technological inputs (fertilizers, pesticides, machine harvesting, plant breeding, biotechnology): “Green Revolution”
• Amendable to intensification practices (higher yield per ha): “Saving Land for Nature”
Cons:
• Loss of crop and microbial biodiversity: fewer varieties
• Loss of soil by erosion: sedimentation of rivers and lakes
• Nutrient pollution of water supplies and oceans: dead zones
• Pesticide contamination of wildlife: biomagnification
• Insecticide and antibiotic resistance
• Greenhouse gas emissions
• High fossil fuel requirement

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Two types of Edenic narrative

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1.
a.) perfect harmonious moment
b.) man’s dominion over nature
c.) fall from that position
2. New/quasi edenic – after eden’s story – hopes for rediscovery of paradise, recovery of original state of innocence. Thoreau’s Walden. If we simplify our relationship to nature, we can live more healthy and sustainable lives. Trueness and mythology implied.

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Three kinds of biodiversity

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genes (variation within a species), species (different varieties of apples/tomatoes; one species can grow in one area and another can grow in another area …. Resistance to different threats), ecosystems (towards the equator there is more diversity in an ecosystem, same with on a mountain; amount of plant/animal life, communities, populations; a small section of a wetland is going to have much more ecological diversity than a monocrop farm)