Dictionary of environmental terms material on the world around the topic. Ecology Ecology concepts and terms

Abiotic environment -(from the Greek a - a prefix in the meaning of "not", "without" and bioticos - vital, living) a set of inorganic conditions (factors) for the habitat of organisms.

Agrobiocenosis -(from the Greek agros - field and biocenosis) a set of organisms living on lands for agricultural use, occupied by crops or planting of cultivated plants.

Adaptation - ( from the late adaptatio - adaptation) in biology, the adaptation of the structure and functions of organisms (their populations) to local conditions of existence.

Accumulation- (from lat. accumulatiop - accumulation, gathering in a heap) accumulation and deposition of sediments, destruction products formed due to the manifestation of various denudation processes.

Accumulation of pollutants - 1. Accumulation of various pollutants of anthropogenic origin in various environments: atmosphere, hydrosphere, soil. 2. Accumulation of pollution in living organisms from the environment and through the consumption of contaminated food.

Allelopathy - a specific form of biotic relationships, expressed in the interaction of plant organisms in phytocenoses; the chemical influence of some plant species on others through specifically acting secretions.

Amensalism - a form of biotic relationship in which for one of the interacting species the consequences of coexistence are negative, while the other does not receive harm or benefit from this. This form of interaction is often found in plants. For example, light-loving herbaceous species growing under a spruce experience oppression as a result of strong shading by its crown, while for the tree itself their neighborhood may be indifferent.

Antibiosis - in one form or another, antagonistic relations that limit or exclude the coexistence of species.

the level of direct and indirect impact of man and his economic system on nature and its individual components.

Area -(from lat. area - area, space) the area of \u200b\u200bdistribution of the organism on land or in the sea.

Atmosphere- (from the Greek atmos - steam, spharia - sphere) the outer gaseous shell of the Earth.

Out (o) ecology -(from the Greek autos - itself and ecology) a branch of ecology that studies the effect of various environmental factors (mainly abiotic) on certain types of organisms.

Batial -(from the Greek bathys - deep) the seabed zone accompanying the continental slope (from 200-500 to 3000 m). The upper limit of the B. depends on the depth at which the gently sloping shelf turns into a relatively steep slope.

Bental - part of the ocean floor inhabited by organisms .

Benthos -(from the Greek bentos - depth) a set of organisms that live at the bottom of water bodies on various substrates.

Bioaccumulation – ( from the Greek bios - life and lat. accumulatio - accumulation, gathering in a heap) accumulation in the body of pollutants coming from the environment through the lungs, skin and digestive tract.

Biogeocenosis -(from Greek bios, ge - Earth and koinos - general) 1) A homogeneous area of the earth's surface with a certain composition of living (biocenosis) and inert (surface layer of the atmosphere, solar energy, soil, water column, etc.) components, united by the exchange of matter and energy into a single natural complex. The concept of B., introduced by V.N. Sukachev (1940), has become widespread in Russian literature.

Bioindicators (bioindication) -(from the Greek. bio and lat. indico - I indicate I determine) organisms or communities of organisms, the presence, number or developmental features of which serve as indicators of natural processes, conditions or anthropogenic changes in the habitat.

Biological resources - include genetic resources, organisms or parts thereof, populations or any other biotic component of ecosystems of real or potential benefit or value to humanity.

biological rhythms - periodically recurring changes in the intensity and nature of biological processes and phenomena.

Biome -(eng. biome from Greek bios - life and lat. -oma - suffix denoting the totality) the totality of various groups of organisms and their habitat in a certain landscape-geographical zone.

Biomass -(from Greek bios - life and lat. massa - lump, piece) the total mass of all organisms on Earth in individual ecosystems, a group of species, individual species, etc. May refer to the raw (living) state of organisms or the dry state of their bodies.

Biosphere -(from the Greek bios - life and spharia - ball) the habitat of living organisms, the composition, structure and energy of which is determined by the activity of the entire set of living organisms - biota.

Biota - a historically established set of plants and animals united by an area of distribution.

Biotic environment - A group of living organisms that influence other organisms through their activities.

Biotope -(from the Greek bios - life and topos - place) a section of a reservoir or land with the same type of relief, climate and other abiotic factors, occupied by a certain biocenosis.

Biocenosis -(from the Greek bios - life and koinos - general) the totality of animals, plants, fungi and microorganisms that jointly inhabit a land area or reservoir. B. is an integral part of biogeocenosis.

Ecosystem buffering - the ability of ecosystems to withstand disturbing influences (including anthropogenic ones is characteristic), to maintain their structure, functional features and the closed nature of the circulation of substances.

View - a set of individuals with common morphophysiological features, having a common evolutionary fate, capable of interbreeding with each other, forming a single system of genomes, occupying a single or partially broken range.

Types - batteries - organisms capable of accumulating pollutants in quantities many times greater than their content in the environment.

Types of indicators - organisms highly sensitive to certain pollutants, reflecting changes in the natural background.

Gene pool -(from Greek genes - giving birth, born and French fond - foundation) the totality of genes of individuals that make up a given population or species.

Herbicides -(from lat. herba - grass and caedo - kill) substances from the group of pesticides for the destruction of mainly weeds and other unwanted vegetation.

Hydrobionts -(from the Greek hydor - water and bios - life) organisms that live in the aquatic environment.

Hypobiosis - a state of reduced vitality. At the same time, representatives of many species burrow into the silt and wait out adverse environmental conditions. This is how shields, planarians, oligochaete worms, mollusks, and some fish behave. Many protozoa form cysts, for example, ciliates, rhizomes, sunflowers.

Homeostasis - the ability to persist with correlated processes that maintain the most stable states. G. actively participates in the internal environment of the body (system) on the basis of the mechanism feedback that strikes a balance between need and opportunity.

Ecosystem homeostasis -(from the Greek homoios - similar, identical and stasis - state) the ability of an ecosystem to autoregulate when environmental conditions change. G.e. arises as a result of the interaction of the cycles of substances and energy flows, as well as “feedback” signals from subsystems.

Detritus -(from lat. detritus - worn) dead organic matter, such as fallen leaves, branches and other plant and animal remains, present in any ecosystem and decomposed by soil and aquatic organisms.

Detritophages -(from lat. detritus - worn out and Greek. phagos - devourer) animals that feed on detritus, i.e. dead, partially decomposed organic matter, together with the microorganisms it contains. For example, earthworms, crustaceans.

The law of the minimum (Liebig's law) - the yield of various crops is directly dependent on the content of nutrients in the soil, which are at a minimum.

Replaceable natural resources - natural resources that, in the process of being used with the development of the scientific and technological process, can now or in the future be replaced by other types of them.

Zoobenthos -(from the Greek zoon - animal and benthos - depth) bottom fauna, animal benthos, a set of animals living at the bottom of a reservoir.

Zooplankton -(from the Greek zoon - animal and planktos - soaring) a set of animals that inhabit the water column and are passively carried by currents.

Zoophages- (from the Greek zoon - animal and phagos - eater) carnivores that feed on other animals

Exhaustible natural resources - natural resources, the consistent use of which can reduce them to a level at which their further exploitation becomes economically unfeasible or there is a threat of their complete disappearance.

Commensals - organisms that benefit from cohabitation with other organisms.

Cooperation (collaboration) - both species form a community. It is not mandatory, but living in a community benefits both species.

Survival Curve - a graph showing the probability of individuals surviving to a certain age. Such graphs are built and, as a rule, differ for groups within a species, distinguished by various characters.

Convergence - the process of developing signs of external similarity in unrelated forms of organisms, if these species lead a similar lifestyle in similar environmental conditions. The convergence of features in different forms affects those organs that are in direct contact with the external environment.

Consumers -(from English consumers) organisms that feed on organic substances accumulated by producers - autotrophs, and convert them into other organic substances.

Climax -(from English climax, plant climax) the final stage of succession; a plant community that is in relative correspondence and dynamic equilibrium with the habitat environment (changes very slowly).

Lithosphere -(from the Greek lithos - stone, sphere) the solid outer shell of the Earth, with an average nominal thickness of 16 kilometers. The thickness of ice on the plains is 30–40 km, in the area of mountain ranges 50–75 km, and within the basins of the seas, 5–6 km.

Local pollution - environmental pollution in the vicinity of industrial enterprises, construction sites, quarries, settlements and other places, not spreading over large areas.

Habitat - part of the earth's space, the boundaries of which are clearly delimited, covering a place with certain conditions (territory or water area), providing the entire cycle of development of an organism, population or species as a whole, where this species is found.

Migration (of animals and plants) – the movement of animals and plants in space, caused by a change in the conditions of existence in habitats or associated with the cycle of their development.

Monitoring -(eng. monitoring, lat. monitor - warning) a system of regular long-term observations in space and time, providing information about the state of the environment in order to assess the past, present and forecast in the future environmental parameters that are important to humans.

Mutualism - a biotic relationship in which each species can live, grow, and reproduce only in the presence of the other. They live in symbiosis.

Inexhaustible natural resources - part natural resources, the use of which by man does not lead to a visible depletion of their reserves now and in the foreseeable future (solar energy, intraterrestrial heat, tidal energy).

Irreplaceable natural resources - part of natural resources that cannot be replaced by others now or in the foreseeable future (for example: environmental conditions of human life).

Neuston -(from the Greek neustos - floating) a community of microorganisms, plants and animals living in the surface film of sea and fresh waters. These are mainly organisms of small and medium sizes.

Nekton - aquatic animals capable of swimming quickly and overcoming the force of currents, for example, fish, squid, dolphins.

Noosphere -(from the Greek noos - mind and spharia - ball) literally “thinking shell”, the sphere of the mind, the highest stage of development (according to V.I. Vernadsky) of the biosphere, associated with the emergence and formation of civilized humanity in it, with a period when reasonable human activity becomes the main determinant of development on Earth. The concept of N. was introduced by the French mathematician and philosopher E. Leroy (1927) and P. Teilhard de Chardin (1930) and used by V. I. Vernadsky in the article “A few words about the noosphere” (1944).

Ozone layer(syn. ozone screen, ozonosphere) - a layer of the atmosphere at a height of approximately 10-50 km, characterized by an increased concentration of ozone (the gas molecules of which consist of three oxygen atoms - O 3), practically coincides with the stratosphere of the atmosphere. Lower limit O.s. at the poles it drops to 7-8 km, and at the equator it rises to 17-18 km. Thickness O.s. on average only 3 mm, which varies from 2 mm at the equator to 4.5 mm at high latitudes. O.s. absorbs ultraviolet radiation, which protects all life on Earth from the harmful effects of ultraviolet radiation.

Environment - 1) The complex of all objects, phenomena and processes that are external to a given organism, population or community of organisms, but interacting with them. Interaction is carried out through the circulation of substances. 2) The totality of natural, natural-anthropogenic and anthropogenic objects, phenomena and processes external to a person, with which he interacts in the course of his activity, therefore the term “human environment” is often used.

Oligotrophs - organisms (plants, microorganisms) that develop in an environment with a low concentration of nutrients.

Greenhouse effect - the effect of heating the lower layers of the atmosphere near the earth's surface, caused by the absorption of long-wave (infrared) radiation from the earth's surface. The main reason for this natural process is the content of water vapor, carbon dioxide and some other gases (nitrogen dioxide, methane) in the atmosphere, the molecules of which absorb the thermal radiation of the Earth. They are called greenhouse gases.

Pedobionts - inhabitants of different soil layers.

Pelagial -(from the Greek pelagos - sea) the water column in the open part of a deep-sea reservoir.

Periphyton -(from the Greek peri - around, around and phyton - plant) a community of aquatic fouling organisms that cover objects and objects submerged in water - stones, piles, large plants, bottoms of ships, etc.

Plankton -(from Greek planktos - wandering) organisms living in suspension in natural waters, usually unable to move independently and therefore carried by currents. If these are plants, then they talk about phytoplankton, if they are animals, then they talk about zooplankton.

population density - the number of individuals (biomass) of a population per unit of space or volume. Being a species-specific ecological characteristic, population density significantly depends on environmental factors.

Population -(from lat. populus - people, population) a set of homogeneous individuals interacting with each other, having a common habitat in the form of a continuous range, within which their reproduction and life take place.

Shelford's rule (law of tolerance) - one of the fundamental principles of ecology, according to which the presence or prosperity of a population of any organisms in a given habitat depends on a complex of environmental factors, each of which has a certain range of endurance (tolerance) for an organism. The range of tolerance for each factor is limited by its minimum and maximum values, within which only an organism can exist.

Limit of stability - maximum tolerated by the body, community, etc. impact (while maintaining their structure and functional features).

Maximum Permissible Concentration (MAC) – the maximum concentration of harmful substances in soil, air or water, above which their negative impact on human health and the environment is noted. It is established by law or recommended by the competent authorities.

Producer(s) -(from lat. producentis - creating) autotrophic organisms that produce organic matter from inorganic matter using photosynthesis or chemosynthesis. These are mostly green plants, including phytoplankton, using solar energy.

Profundal -(from lat. profundus - deep) the deepest part of the lake, into which wind-wave mixing and sunlight do not penetrate.

Regional pollution - environmental pollution found within a large area, but not covering the entire planet (for example: pollution of the World Ocean with oil products, waters of regions of intensive agriculture with phosphorus and nitrogen compounds, the atmosphere of industrialized territories with nitrogen oxides, sulfur, dust).

Synusia -(from English synusium) a structural part of a phytocenosis, characterized by a certain composition of ecologically more or less similar species belonging to the same life form. It has spatial (or temporal) isolation, and, consequently, a special phytocenotic environment.

Community - a set of cohabiting organisms of different species, representing a certain ecological unity (for example, phytoplankton of a reservoir, soil animals of a forest area). Sometimes S. is defined as the totality of all organisms (plants, animals, microorganisms) inhabiting a land area or a reservoir, and is interpreted as a synonym for the term “biocenosis”. There are also S. plants - phytocenosis and S. animals - zoocenosis.

Stenobiont -(from Greek stenos - narrow and Greek biontos - living) an organism that can live in the constancy of any environmental factor or group of interacting factors. Stenobiontness can be expressed in relation to temperature (stenothermic organisms), salinity (stenohaline), hydrostatic pressure (stenobatic). Among S. there may be organisms that need an increased value of any factor (they are indicated by the addition of the ending - phylum - thermophiles, hygrophiles, etc.). Species or individuals that require reduced doses or absence of it (indicated by adding the ending - fob - calcephobe, gallophobes, etc.).

Stress -(from lat. stress - stress) 1) The state of stress of the body - a set of physiological reactions that occur in the body of a person or animal (possibly in plants) in response to the influence of various adverse, or, conversely, exceptionally favorable factors.

Sublittoral -(from Latin sub - under and litoralis - coastal) a transitional zone between the littoral and profundal of the lake, also called the embankment of the coastal shallows.

Succession -(from Latin successio - succession, inheritance) the development of an ecosystem, which consists in changing the species structure and biocenotic processes over time. In other words, this is a successive change in time of some biocenoses by others on a certain area of the earth's surface, which, with an increasing degree of accuracy, ensure the closure of the biochemical cycle of substances.

Supralittoral -(from lat. supra - above, above and litoralis - coastal) splash zone, a zone on the border of the sea and land, lying above the littoral and not flooded during high tide. It is exposed to the action of the surf, covered with water during surge winds and strong storms.

Technogenesis - the process of changing natural complexes and biogeocenoses under the influence of human production activities.

Tolerance -(from lat. tolerantia - patience) the body's ability to endure the adverse effects of a particular environmental factor. All organisms are characterized by an ecological minimum and an ecological maximum of the magnitude of the influencing factor; the range between these two values is the T limits.

Trophic chain (food chain) - relationships between organisms through which matter and energy are transformed in an ecosystem. In T.c. when transferring potential energy from link to link, most of it (80-90%) is lost, turning into heat. If you represent this ratio quantitatively, you get a food pyramid. T.c. divided into two main types: pasture and detrital. In the pasture shopping center (chain of grazing) the basis is made up of autotrophic organisms, then there are herbivorous animals consuming them, then predators (consumers) of the 1st order, predators of the second order. In detrital T.c. (decomposition chains), most common in forests, most of plants are not eaten, but dies off and undergoes decomposition by saprophytic organisms and mineralization.

Ultraabisal -(from Latin ultra - over, more and Greek abyssos - bottomless) the zone of greatest ocean depths (6-11 km), confined to ocean trenches, located along the continents (Peruan-Chilean) or island chains (Japanese, Mariana) total area U. less than 1.5% of the ocean floor.

Soil fauna - There are several ecological groups of soil animals: 1) microfauna - microscopic animals ranging in size from 2 to 100 microns. These include protozoa, rotifers, nematodes; 2) mesofauna - this group includes animals with body sizes from tenths to 2-3 mm, for example, ticks, springtails, two-tailed, centipedes; 3) macro fauna - soil animals with body sizes from 2 to 20 mm. These are insect larvae, earthworms, bears, centipedes; four) megafauna - These are large shrews, mainly from among mammals. A number of species spend their whole lives in the soil (moles, mole rats, mole voles, zokors), or part of life cycle(gophers, marmots, rabbits, badgers, etc.).

Phytobenthos -(from the Greek phyton - plant and benthos - depth), bottom vegetation, a set of plant organisms that live at the bottom of a river and reservoirs.

Phytoplankton- (from the Greek phyton - plant and planktos - soaring, wandering) a set of plant organisms passively soaring and carried by currents in the water column, mainly microscopic algae, unicellular and colonial.

Phytophages -(from the Greek phyton - plant and phagos - eater) herbivorous organisms, consumers of the 1st order. They provide the first step in the processing of living plant biomass along the grazing chain.

Phytocenosis -(from the Greek phyton - plant and koinos - general) plant community, a set of plants on a relatively homogeneous area of \u200b\u200bthe earth's surface, producing organic matter based on photosynthesis. F. is characterized by a certain species composition and structure, formed as a result of the selection of species capable of coexisting with each other and with other organisms under certain conditions.

Fluctuation- these are reversible, multidirectional changes, when periods of aging and rejuvenation of populations alternate and generations continuously replace each other. Thus, the population size remains unchanged for a long period of time, and it retains the area it occupies.

Background pollution - pollution of the environment by physical, chemical or biological agents found far from their sources and practically anywhere in the world.

Background monitoring - monitoring whose main task is to fix and establish indicators characterizing the natural background, as well as its global and regional differences and changes in the process of biosphere development.

Predation - a type of biotic relationship in which a predatory species feeds on other animals.

Eurybionts -(from the Greek "evry" and bios - life) animals or plants that can exist with wide changes in environmental factors. So many terrestrial animals living in a continental climate are able to withstand significant fluctuations in temperature (eurythermal organisms), humidity, solar radiation and other factors.

Euryphagy- (from the Greek "evry ..." and phagos - devourer) omnivorous, feeding animals (euryphages) with a wide variety of plant and animal food.

Ecological valency - the degree of adaptability of the species to changes in environmental conditions. Quantitatively, it is expressed by the range of environmental changes within which a given species retains normal vital activity.

Ecological niche -(from the English ecological niche) a set of chemical, physical and biological factors necessary for the life of an organism that has certain ecological characteristics. The same species may occupy different ecological niches in different parts of its range; the same ecological niche, in different geographical locations, can be occupied by different species.

Environmental factor - any environmental condition or a phenomenon (process) affecting the environment to which living organisms and inert matter of nature react with adaptive reactions (factors that are lethal for organisms and irreversible changes in quality for inert matter lie outside adaptive abilities).

Ecosystem - Until now, there has been a wide variety of definitions of the concept of E. 1. E. (N.F. Reimers. Nature management. - M .: Thought. -1990) - a) any community of living beings and its habitat, combined into a single functional whole, arising on the basis of interdependence and causal relationships that exist between individual environmental components. b) E. synonymous with biogeocenosis. 2. E. (I.I. Dedu. Ecological Encyclopedic Dictionary. - Chisinau: Moldavian Soviet Encyclopedia.-1989) - a term introduced into science by A. Tensley (1935) to denote any unity (of a very different volume and rank), including all organisms (i.e. biocenosis) in a given area (biotope) and interacting with the physical environment in such a way that the energy flow creates a well-defined trophic structure, species diversity and the circulation of substances within the system. 3. E. (Yu.P. Khrustalev, G.G. Matishov. Ecological and geographical dictionary. -Apatity: Kola Science Center. -1996) - a single natural or anthropogenic - natural complex, consisting of a combination of living organisms and their environment habitats interconnected by the exchange of matter and energy and combined into a single functional whole

Ecotype - a group of individuals of a plant species adapted to certain soil and climatic conditions.

environmental science- environmental science.

epipelagic - the lower boundary of the epipelagic zone (no more than 200 m) is determined by the penetration of sunlight in an amount sufficient for photosynthesis. Green plants cannot exist deeper than this zone.

Literature

Main:

1. Buzmakov V.V. Nature management and agricultural ecology / Buzmakov V.V., Moskaev Sh.A.-M., 2005.-477 p.

2. Gorelov A. A. Ecology: a textbook for universities /A. A. Gorelov.-M.: Academy, 2006.- 400 p.

3. Denisov V.V. Ecology: Textbook for universities / Ed. V.V.Denisova.-Rostov-on-Don: Publishing Center "Mart", 2002.-640 p.

4. Dmitriev V.V. Applied ecology: a textbook for universities /V. V. Dmitriev, A. I. Zhirov, A. N. Lastochkin.-M.: Academy, 2008.-608 p.

5. Kolpakova V.P. Fundamentals of ecology: Uch. allowance for students / V.P. Kolpakova, N.D. Ovcharenko. - Barnaul: Publishing house of AGAU, 2005. -195 p.

6. Kolpakova V.P. Ecology: method. instructions for studying the discipline and performing tests /V. P. Kolpakova.-Barnaul: Publishing house of AGAU, 2009.-22 p.

7. Korobkin V.I. Ecology: a textbook for universities / Korobkin V. I., Peredelsky L. V. - Rostov-on-Don: Phoenix, 2003.-576 p.

8. Korobkin V.I. Ecology: a textbook for universities / Korobkin V. I., Peredelsky L. V. - Rostov-on-Don: Phoenix, 2004.-576 p.

9. General ecology: a textbook for universities / ed. A. S. Stepanovskikh.-M.: UNITI, 2002.-510 p.

10. Rozanov S.I.. General ecology: a textbook for universities / Rozanov S. I. - St. Petersburg: Lan, 2005.-288 p.

11. Rozanov S.I. General ecology: a textbook for universities / Rozanov S.I. - St. Petersburg: Lan, 2003.-288 p.

12. Stepanovskikh A.S. Ecology: Textbook for universities /A.S.Stepanovskih.-M.: UNITI-DANA, 2001.-703 p.

13. Tetior A.N. Urban ecology: textbook /Tetior A.N.-M.: Academy, 2007.-336 p.

Additional:

1. Vronsky V. A. Ecology: dictionary - reference book /V. A. Vronsky.-Rostov n / D: Phoenix, 2002.- 576 p.

2. Ignatov V.G. Ecology and economics of environmental management: Textbook for universities / Ignatov V.G., Kokin A.V. - Rostov-on-Don: "Phoenix", 2003.-512 p.

3. Kalygin V. G. Industrial ecology: textbook for universities /V. G. Kalygin.-M.: Academy, 2004.-432 p.

4. Markov Yu.G. Social ecology: the interaction of society and nature: a textbook for universities / Markov Yu.G..-Novosibirsk: Sib. univ. publishing house, 2004.-544 p.

5. Markov Yu.G. Social Ecology: Interaction of Society and Nature: Textbook /Institute of Philosophy and Law SB RAS.-Novosibirsk: Lada; Science, 2001.-544 p.

6. Novikov Yu.V. Ecology, environment and man: Textbook for universities, secondary schools and colleges / Novikov Yu.V..-M.: FAIR-PRESS, 2002.-560 p.

7. Ovcharenko N.D. Business games in the course "Ecology": Guidelines to perform practical exercises / AGAU; Comp.: N.D. Ovcharenko, O.G. Sidorova, O.E. Vlasov.-Barnaul: Publishing house of AGAU, 2003.-21.

8. Potapov A.D. Ecology: A textbook for university students studying in the direction of "Construction" / Potapov A.D.-M.: graduate School, 2002.-446 p.

9. Protasov V.F. Ecology, health and environmental protection in Russia: Educational and reference manual / Protasov VF ..-M .: Finance and statistics, 2001.-672 p.

10. Protasov V.F. Ecology: Terms and concepts. Standards, certification. Standards and indicators: Educational and reference manual / V.F. Protasov, A.S. Matveev.-M.: Finance and statistics, 2001.-208 p.

11. Prokhorov B. B. Human ecology: a textbook for universities / Prokhorov B. B. - M .: Academy, 2003.-320 p.

12. Khotuntsev Yu.L. Ecology and environmental safety: Textbook for universities / Yu.L.Khotuntsev.-M.: Publishing Center "Academy", 2004.-480 p.

13. Ecology for technical universities/V.M.Garin, I.A.Klenova, V.I.Kolesnikov; Under total ed. V.M. Garina.-Rostov-on-Don: Phoenix, 200.- 1384 p.

Applications

Attachment 1.

To environmental conditions, as well as any new signs that they have developed while doing so (thus, a cactus thorn is a leaf that has adapted to an arid climate by reducing its surface area to reduce evaporation).

biome. One of the largest ecosystems forming a common ecosystem. Each of them is characterized by a climatic community and a special climate in the region.

Renewable energy sources. Natural energy sources such as wind and water.

Deforestation. Mass clearing of forests for fuel or timber, and to clear land for new arable land or towns.

Genetic Engineering. Changing the genetic code to create organisms useful to humans. Genes carry information about the basic properties of an organism.

Natural selection. The theory of evolution put forward by Charles Darwin. She argues that within each species, those organisms that have managed to adapt better than others to environmental conditions are more likely to survive and reproduce. Therefore, the changes that allow them to adapt to new conditions are passed on to the next generations, which ensures the evolutionary development of the species as a whole.

pollution. The entry of foreign matter into the soil and natural cycles, as well as the presence of artificial chemicals or an excessive concentration of natural minerals in the soil, which causes great damage to it.

Protective coloration (mimicry). The use by plants or animals of a special coloration that allows them either to be less visible against the background of the environment, or to disguise themselves as other plants or animals.

intensive farming. Applying the latest techniques to maximize yields, such as using chemical fertilizers, insecticides, and other chemicals, and growing the same crops every year in the same fields. These practices severely damage soils and alter natural cycles.

Irrigation. Irrigation of land, mainly through canals. With ill-conceived irrigation methods, the content in the topsoil can increase, and the land will become infertile.

Sources. All types of green plants that produce food from primary substances through the process of photosynthesis. They are the basis for all food chains.

disappearance. The extinction of animal and plant species and, as a result, their complete disappearance from the face of the Earth.

acid rain. Rain and snow containing poisonous chemicals that get into it due to pollution from industrial and automotive gases. Such rains kill many animals and plants, especially trees and algae, and cause serious damage to buildings and human health.

Climate. The set of weather conditions (, wind and humidity) characteristic of a given region.

climate community. A community of species that remains essentially unchanged until major climatic or ecological changes occur in the area (see also Continuity).

Integrated heat and power plants. High-efficiency power plants being built in cities. Use hot water from electricity generation to heat nearby homes, schools, etc.

Marginal (borderline) lands. Land suitable only for grazing and not suitable for agriculture.

Desert offensive. The process by which virgin soils (usually used as grazing land by the locals) are rendered infertile due to ill-conceived exploitation and excessively intensive agricultural practices, or as a result of climate change.

Necrophages. Organisms that feed on dead organisms and decompose them into mineral compounds. Niche, ecological. The place that an organism occupies in its ecosystem. It includes the features of its nutrition and interaction with other organisms.

Ozone layer. The layer in the atmosphere that contains ozone gas, which blocks out very harmful ultraviolet radiation from the Sun. However, some industrial gases gradually destroy it.

organic matter. Substances that are or have been part of the body. Contains carbon.

Greenhouse effect. Occurs when reflected solar heat is trapped by gases from the atmosphere and heats it up. Human activity, the result of which is an increase in the emission of gases into the atmosphere (mainly carbon dioxide), threatens a general increase in temperature on Earth.

A series of living organisms in which each previous species serves as food for the next. at the same time it is transferred from one level (see. Trophic levels) to another. All food chains in a single ecosystem are combined into a single food web.

Consumers. Organisms that feed on other organisms.

Continuity. A sequence of natural changes in a given habitat in which one community succeeds another until a new climatic community is formed.

Crop rotation. The principle of farming, in which different, specially selected crops are grown every year in a new field, within a cycle of four to five years. This helps control yields and avoid soil depletion.

Community. The totality of plants and animals in a given habitat.

Habitat. A defined area in which a community of plants and animals lives.

Territory. The area that one or more organisms occupy and defend against the invasion of rivals (most often - organisms of the same species).

Trophic levels. Various links in the food chain corresponding to organisms that obtain food and energy from the same sources.

Photosynthesis. The process by which plants use solar energy to obtain food (carbohydrates) from water and carbon dioxide.

Chlorofluorocarbons. Chlorine-based compounds used in aerosols, refrigerator freezers and in the production of polystyrene, which scientists believe are the main cause of ozone depletion.

Evolution. A long process of change in living organisms, lasting millions of years.

Environmentally friendly technologies. Application of methods that do not conflict with natural cycles and do not violate the ecological balance in the region (there are environmentally friendly technologies in forestry, agriculture, etc.).

Eco farming. Agricultural practices that take into account the natural cycles - for example, the use of only organic fertilizers (manure), natural pest control, and crop rotation.

Environmentally friendly technologies. Inventory, machinery and methods that those who need them have (for example, manual equipment instead of tractors where it is not possible to get engine oil and spare parts).

Ecosystem. A self-sufficient system consisting of a community of plants and animals in their environment, which are inextricably linked by metabolism and energy.

soil erosion. The process of destruction and death of the fertile topsoil - mainly due to rain and wind, but also due to intensive farming, deforestation and insufficient artificial irrigation. Lands become barren as a result of erosion.

ABIOTIC- inanimate; separated or independent from other beings (factor, influence, condition, environment, etc.)
SUBSCRIBER- a legal entity, as well as entrepreneurs without forming a legal entity. owning, managing or operationally managing facilities, water supply and / or sewerage systems that are directly connected to public water supply and / or sewerage systems, which have concluded an agreement with the water supply and sewerage organization in the prescribed manner for the supply (receipt) of water and / or reception (discharge) of sewage (Government Decree Russian Federation dated 12.02.99 N 167 "On approval of the Rules for the use of public water supply and sewerage systems in the Russian Federation").
EMERGENCY RESCUE SERVICE (ASS)- a set of controls, forces and means designed to solve the problems of preventing and eliminating emergency situations, functionally combined into a single system, which is based on emergency rescue units (GOST R 22.0.02-94).
EMERGENCY RELEASE(A.v.) - forced release of pollutants into the environment in an amount that far exceeds the MPE. As a rule, A.v. is a consequence of depreciation of the equipment of enterprises and violation of technologies.
ACCIDENT - destruction of structures and/or technical devices used at a hazardous production facility, uncontrolled explosion and/or release of hazardous substances (Law "On Industrial Safety of Hazardous Production Facilities")
ACCIDENT - damage or failure of public water supply systems, sewerage systems or individual structures, equipment, devices, resulting in the cessation or significant reduction in the volume of water consumption and sanitation, quality drinking water or causing damage to the environment, property of legal or natural persons and public health (Decree of the Government of the Russian Federation of February 12, 1999 N 167 "On approval of the Rules for the use of public water supply and sewerage systems in the Russian Federation").
ENVIRONMENTAL ACCIDENT- a production or transport situation that is not provided for by the current technological regulations and rules and is accompanied by a significant increase in environmental impact. By the nature of risk A. e. can be divided into the following groups: emissions and discharges of chemicals from stationary sources; emissions of bacteriological and biologically active substances; releases of radioactive substances; explosions and fires; sudden collapse of buildings and various structures (hydrodynamic, electric power, utility systems, treatment facilities, etc.); transport accidents (accidents during the transportation of passengers and goods by land, water and air transport, accidents on pipelines); emergency situations related to the testing of military equipment, etc.
AUTOMOBILE TRANSPORT - a complex that includes vehicles, infrastructure facilities for ensuring the operation of vehicles and highways (draft federal law "On ensuring the environmental safety of road transport").
AUTOTROPH (HELIOTROPH)- an organism that synthesizes organic substances from inorganic compounds using the energy of the Sun (heliotroph) or the energy released during chemical reactions(chemotroph).
AGROSPHERE(A.) - part of the biosphere involved in agricultural use (i.e., occupied by agroecosystems). The share of A. accounts for approximately 30% of the land, including about 10% occupied by arable land, and the rest - by natural fodder lands. This ratio varies in different parts of the world. The reserves for the expansion of A. have been exhausted, a further increase in the share of A., especially due to the destruction of forests, will inevitably aggravate the crisis situation on the planet.
A.'s resources are being destroyed because the use of land is carried out without observing environmental requirements. Over the past 50 years, the rate of loss of productive arable land in the world has reached 6 million hectares per year; trend by 2000 will reach 40%).
Arable soils are polluted with pesticide residues and heavy metals, their physical properties are deteriorating (there is a destruction of the structure and compaction). Hydromelioration causes enormous damage to A. Under the influence of soil erosion, secondary salinization of soils and overgrazing, the process of desertification occurs.
A. also collapses under the influence of industry, especially energy and metallurgical complexes.
The ecological situation in Africa has deteriorated especially since the Green Revolution, and this has stimulated the development of agroecology and attempts to solve the problem of food security, taking into account environmental requirements.
AGROECOLOGY(A.) - a complex of sciences that explore the possibilities of agricultural land use for obtaining crop and livestock products while simultaneously preserving agricultural resources (soils, natural forage lands, hydrological characteristics of agrolandscapes), biological diversity and protecting the ecological human habitat and manufactured products from agricultural pollution . A. was formed as a branch of ecology in the second half of the twentieth century. Agriculture has developed especially rapidly in the last two decades due to the sharp deterioration of the ecological situation in the agricultural sector.
The ideas of preserving agricultural resources were already expressed in ancient times by the Roman pragmatists Columella, Varro and Pliny the Elder. The forerunners of modern A. - A.T. Bolotov (1738-1833) and V.R. Williams (1863-1939). Both substantiated the need for an optimal ratio between the area of arable land, natural fodder lands and forests and livestock, which ensures partial closure of nutrient cycles and the preservation of soil fertility - the main resource of agricultural production. The main methodological principles of modern agriculture are the ecological imperative, the adaptive approach, and the maintenance of the sestination of agroecosystems.
The main task of A. is to activate the biological potential of agroecosystems and their constituent elements at all levels (from an individual plant and animal to the entire agroecosystem) and to replace a significant part of anthropogenic energy with the internal energy of biological processes. A. focuses on:
selection of adaptive varieties of plants and animal breeds;
creation of heterogeneous varietal agropopulations and variety mixtures of plants and mixed age and breed groups of livestock;
use of crop rotations, polycultures;
formation of a system of useful symbiotic relationships by increasing the biological diversity of the agroecosystem;
ecological optimization of agroecosystem structure.
An important aspect of A. is the development of methods for influencing soils and their populations (fauna, microorganisms) with the aim of activating the processes of biological nitrogen fixation, humification, and destruction of pesticide residues and controlling the processes of mineralization of organic matter and nitrification. The whole complex of environmentally sound human impacts on the soil is united by an adaptive farming system.
AGROECOSYSTEM(A.) - an ecological system that unites a piece of territory (geographical landscape) occupied by a farm that produces agricultural products. A. includes: soils with their population (animals, algae, fungi, bacteria); fields-agrocenoses; cattle; fragments of natural and semi-natural ecosystems (forests, natural fodder lands, swamps, water bodies); human.
The main features of A. are determined by a person who stands at the top of the ecological pyramid and is interested in obtaining the maximum amount of agricultural products. At the same time, if a person follows the ecological imperative, he preserves soils, biological diversity, does not allow agricultural pollution and receives environmentally friendly products, and A. acquires the features of sustainability (sestining).
A. is an autotrophic ecosystem, the main source of energy for which is the Sun. Solar energy is assimilated by producing plants and fixed in crop yields or transferred through food chains to consumers, the main of which are livestock, and to decomposers, primarily detritus-feeding animals living in the soil. By processing organic residues, they contribute to the activity of decomposer microorganisms that replenish the supply of nutrients available to plant roots. An important role in A. is played by nitrogen-fixing bacteria, of which the most important are the species symbiotically associated with legumes, since when the soil is tilled with a plow, biological nitrogen fixation due to free-living bacteria decreases by 4–5 times.
In contrast to natural ecosystems, A. are more open, and an outflow of matter and energy occurs from them with crops, livestock products, and also as a result of soil destruction (dehumification and soil erosion). To compensate for these losses and control the composition of A. (regulation of the density of populations of weeds, insect pests, etc.), a person introduces additional nutrients into A. (nitrogen, phosphorus and potash fertilizers) and expends energy on the production, transportation and application of mineral and organic fertilizers and pesticides, the production and repair of agricultural machinery, fuel, etc. However, the amount of anthropogenic energy, even in the most energy-saturated farms, is less than 1% of the solar energy, which is recorded by plants A.
A. are very diverse and can differ in specialization (plant growing, animal husbandry, complex) and in the amount of anthropogenic energy input (extensive, compromise, intensive). There are both small aboriginal farms, where only manual labor is used and, less often, the muscular strength of animals, as well as highly mechanized farms and cattle-feeding complexes that consume a lot of anthropogenic energy.
Plant-growing A. In extensive farming, a fallow-shifting system of farming is used (in the conditions of a forest zone, a slash-and-burn farming system). In such systems, there is a constant rotation (replacement) of arable land and natural vegetation, as a result of which soil fertility is restored.
In a compromise economy, a soil-restoring role is played by crops of perennial grasses and annual legumes in crop rotations, as well as green manures (green fertilizers). Phosphorus-potassium fertilizers are used in moderation, and biological methods of plant protection and a system of beneficial symbiotic relationships are used to control the density of insect pests.
In intensive farming, the same production scheme is preserved as in compromise farming, but the doses of mineral fertilizers are sharply increased, watering and the use of pesticides in high doses are possible. Crop rotations are simplified to two or three links and do not include green manure or monoculture is used. With an increase in anthropogenic energy inputs, the risk of soil destruction increases.
Animal husbandry A. An extensive variant is livestock grazing on natural fodder lands (with or without haymaking, depending on the climate). At the same time, the investments of anthropogenic energy are minimal and come down to the costs of the livelihood of shepherds and the primary processing of livestock products.
With a compromise option, fodder is produced on natural fodder lands and on arable land (perennial grasses, tilled crops, etc.), the soil fertility of which is maintained by manure, and low doses of phosphorus-potassium fertilizers can be used.
In the intensive variant, livestock products are produced in cattle feed complexes, and feed is obtained from arable land with high energy inputs and, moreover, is imported from other areas (in countries such as the Netherlands or Singapore - even from other states). Part of the manure is applied to the fields, but its amount turns out to be more than can be applied to the soil.
Complex A. At low energy inputs, the rotation of fields and natural fodder lands is maintained (part of the arable land is abandoned after a certain time for natural restoration of fertility, although it is partially supported by manure). Mineral fertilizers are either not used, or phosphorus-potassium fertilizers are applied in low doses. Providing the soil with nitrogen is achieved through biological nitrogen fixation. This variant of the economy is typical for alternative farming systems. In essence, such A. created A.T. Bolotov.
With the intensive option, forage production on natural forage lands is minimized, and both crop production and livestock feed are obtained from arable land. Doses of applied fertilizers and pesticides are high. Irrigation possible.
With a compromise option, the adaptive approach is most fully implemented. The area of arable land is limited, its fertility is maintained by manure, crop rotations and moderate doses of phosphorus-potassium fertilizers. Control of weeds, pests and diseases of cultivated plants is carried out either by a biomethod or an integrated crop protection method. Cattle receive food both on natural fodder lands and from arable land, since perennial grasses and fodder annual legumes occupy a significant place in crop rotations. All this makes it possible to maintain a sufficiently high productivity of A.
Since an increase in the input of anthropogenic energy makes it difficult to achieve the sestination of A., extensive livestock A. in conditions where there is no possibility of obtaining plant-growing products, and compromising complex A. are most justified.
In the first case, it is necessary to regulate pasture loads in order to exclude pasture digression. A. with remote control is possible, when the natural ecosystem is essentially preserved, which is rationally used. For example, in the tundra, the animal component of A. is a wild deer, in the steppes - the saiga, in the savannas - complex multi-species herds of ungulates (antelopes, zebras, etc.), and a person removes some of the animals in accordance with the standard for the maximum allowable yield, which ensures the safety populations. Due to the differentiation of ecological niches and a more complete and uniform consumption of plant biomass, such A. can produce several times more meat than A. with one or two types of livestock. The efficiency of pasture use increases with the joint keeping of livestock of different species and even with a herd of animals of the same species of different ages.
In the second case, the main condition for ensuring sestining is the ecological optimization of the A structure.
ADAPTIVE APPROACH(in agriculture, A.p.) - a system for obtaining agricultural products that ensures the maximum payback of biological products for each unit of anthropogenic energy introduced into the agroecosystem.
With A.p. varieties of cultivated plants and breeds of farm animals are selected that are most appropriate for the soil and climatic conditions of the region. So, N.I. Vavilov wrote that it is desirable to “northernize” agriculture, but in the Non-Chernozem region, which is well provided with precipitation, not wheat, but rye is to be grown. Today (along with barley and oats) rye forms the basis of crop production in the northern regions of Germany, as well as in Finland, Sweden, and Norway.
Vavilov believed that in the southern part of the steppe zone, wheat should be replaced by sorghum, which he figuratively called "the camel of the plant world." Currently, in Italy, Spain and France, the area under sorghum has increased by 30-60 times. Work is underway on adaptive selection of sorghum for the southern regions of Russia.
Within the framework of A.p. the use of species of local flora that are most adapted to local conditions is expanding, adaptive selection is being developed, the structure of agrophytocenoses and agroecosystems is being ecologically optimized.
With A.p. in animal husbandry, species and breeds of agricultural animals are zoned, the optimal boundaries for sheep breeding, horse breeding, reindeer breeding, camel breeding, etc. are determined. An example of an animal highly adapted to the natural conditions of the steppe zone is the Bashkir horse. It does not require winter quarters, it is kept outdoors all year round and is content with pasture. The influence of horses on the herbage of pastures is incomparably milder than cows, and even more so sheep.
Violation of the requirements of A.p. leads to a sharp rise in the cost of agricultural products or, in general, to a “zero effect”, when plants or animals introduced into new areas do not take root (examples: attempts to cultivate corn far north of its distribution area or grow a tea bush in Transcarpathia).
ADAPTATION[late lat. adaptatio - adaptation, adjustment] - a set of morphophysiological, population and other properties of living organisms that ensure the possibility of sustainable survival in specific environmental conditions. Distinguish general A. (adaptation to a wide range of environmental conditions) and private A. (adaptation to local or specific environmental conditions). Numerous environmental factors are divided into adequate and inadequate congenital and acquired properties of the body. Organisms have adapted to adequate environmental conditions as a result of long evolution and ontogenesis, as a result of which stable adaptive mechanisms have been formed in them. In inadequate conditions full And. organisms reach not always. To some environmental factors, A. may be partial, but under extremely extreme conditions, organisms may be completely incapable of A. In the latter case, organisms look for a more suitable environment, and processes of migration and reimmigration occur.
WATER AGGRESSION- the ability of water and substances dissolved in it to destroy various materials by chemical action (GOST 27065-86).
AGROCHEMICALS- fertilizers, chemical ameliorants, feed additives intended for plant nutrition, soil fertility regulation and animal nutrition (Law "On Safe Handling of Pesticides and Agrochemicals").
AGROECOSYSTEM (AGROCENOSIS)- a biogeocenosis created for the purpose of obtaining agricultural products and regularly maintained by a person (field, pasture, vegetable garden, garden, protective forest plantation, etc.). Without human support, agro-ecosystems quickly disintegrate, returning to their natural state.
ADSORPTION- absorption of a substance from a solution or gas by the surface layer of a liquid or solid body. Used in wastewater treatment and gas emissions.
NITROGEN FIXATION- the process of chemical conversion of atmospheric nitrogen gas into nitrates or ammonia, which can be used by plants for the synthesis of amino acids and other nitrogen-containing organic molecules
WATER AREA- a body of water limited by natural, artificial or conditional boundaries (Water Code of the Russian Federation).
ACCREDITATION- an act of official recognition of the possibility and competence to perform certain functions (On the organization of a certification system for environmental requirements to prevent harm to the environment (ecological certification systems) Order of the Ministry of Natural Resources of Russia dated 23.01.95 N 18).
ACTIVE SL- the accumulation of a large number of microorganisms, which, in the process of biological wastewater treatment, destroy the dissolved organic compounds contained in the water.
ALARMISM(A.) - ideas about the inevitability of a global ecological crisis due to unregulated growth of the planet's population, depletion of resources, destruction of biological diversity and environmental pollution.
The first consistent ecologist-alarmist was J.B. Lamarck. At the beginning of the 20th century, he warned humanity that it would perish by destroying its own habitat. Modern A. is not so pessimistic, forecasts are not considered fatal: the crisis can be avoided if the attitude of society towards nature changes.
A striking example of A. - the reports of the Club of Rome, compiled in the 70s. a group of scientists led by Aurelio Peccei. In the 90s. after Peccei's death, A. was largely overcome in the forecasts of the Club of Rome, which reflected the success in improving the ecological situation in developed countries (Japan, Germany, etc.). Nevertheless, progressive global environmental pollution, ecological catastrophes of the scale of Chernobyl or the Aral Sea, unregulated population growth, an increasingly clear energy crisis, a sharp decrease in biological diversity (destruction of tropical forests, etc.), failures of international cooperation in the field of nature conservation, etc. increased alarmist sentiments not only among environmentalists, but also among politicians.
In general, A. served as an awareness of the difficulties facing humanity. The task of ecology in alliance with economics and ethics (social ecology) is to overcome the alarmist view of the world with reason.
ALLELOPATHY- mutual or unilateral influence of co-growing plants through their change in their environment through the release of liquid and gaseous chemical waste products. Incompatible species cannot be grown together. The phenomenon of allelopathy should be taken into account when composing bouquets.
ALLELOGEN- a chemical that causes allelopathy.
ALBEDO[from lat. albus - light] - a value characterizing the reflectivity of any surface; It is expressed as the ratio of the radiation reflected by the surface to the solar radiation arriving at the surface. For example, A. chernozem - 0.15; sand 0.3-0.4; average A. of the Earth - 0.39; Moons - 0.07.
ALTERNATIVE ENERGY SOURCES- obtaining energy not from its traditional sources (coal, oil, shale, etc.), but from renewable ones) using the energy of the Sun, wind, tides, geothermal sources.
ALTERNATIVE FARMING SYSTEMS(A.s.z.) - methods for obtaining agricultural products without the use of chemical plant protection products and mineral fertilizers (sometimes purified phosphate fertilizers, such as thomas slag, are used in small quantities), as well as without growth stimulants and other chemicals when keeping livestock. Basis A.S.Z. - crop rotations with green manure and manure.
Food products produced on organic farms (usually dietary or for baby food) are 2-4 times more expensive, and their quality is confirmed by a special certificate. In Germany, such a certificate can be obtained no earlier than five years after the complete cessation of the use of chemicals.
Prospects for A.S.Z. are limited, since the complete rejection of fertilizers inevitably leads to a decrease in yield. For this reason, A.S.Z. farms do not play a significant role in agricultural production. Even in developed countries (Germany, USA), they account for less than 1% of the total number of agricultural enterprises. The most promising compromise farming systems
ALTERNATIVE- one option from several possible solutions (factor, source, condition, etc.)
ALPHA DIVERSITY- diversity within a habitat or within a community at the species level.
AMENSALISM- a form of antibiosis, in which one of the cohabiting species oppresses the other, without receiving any harm or benefit from this. Example: light-loving herbs growing under a spruce suffer from severe darkening, while they themselves do not affect the tree.
AMPLITUDE ECOLOGICAL[lat. amplitudo - magnitude] - the limits of adaptability of a species or community to changing environmental conditions.
ANAEROBIC- existing or occurring in the absence of oxygen (organism, process, etc.)
ANTIBIOSIS- type of biotic relationship, when both interacting populations (or one of them) experience a negative impact on each other.
ANTHROPOGENIC ENERGY(in the agroecosystem, A.e.) - the energy received by a person, as a rule, from exhaustible sources and spent on maintaining the composition and structure of the agroecosystem. A.e. enters the agroecosystem in the form of bound energy already spent on the production of agricultural machinery, fertilizers, pesticides, fuel, etc. Direct costs A.e. in agriculture, they account for no more than 50% (including fuel - 35%), the rest is indirect costs (30% - for the production of agricultural machinery). However, even the highest A.e. into the agroecosystem make up no more than 1% of its energy budget, the basis of which is inexhaustible environmentally friendly solar energy.
Main items of direct costs A.e. in the agroecosystem are as follows.
1. Plant growing (obtaining primary biological products):
breeding and seed production (energy expenditure outside a specific agroecosystem - at breeding stations, research institutes, variety plots, seed farms, etc.);
providing conditions for the development of plants (plowing, cultivation, control of weed infestation of crops, insect pests, diseases);
improvement of conditions for soil nutrition of plants (mineral and organic fertilizers, watering);
preservation of seeds of cultivated plants in winter (energy for granaries).
2. Animal husbandry (conversion of primary biological products into secondary ones):
production and preparation of feed for feeding (harvesting of hay, growing root crops and grain for fodder purposes, ensiling, preparing haylage and mixed fodder, steaming straw, etc.);
maintaining the optimal temperature of the animal habitat in the winter (construction and heating of livestock buildings);
ensuring high productivity of animals (milk production, weight gain, wool shearing, egg production, etc.) through the use of chemical stimulants, vitamins, antibiotics, etc.
3. Transport (transfer of matter and energy within an agroecosystem, between agroecosystems and urban ecosystems, or between several agroecosystems):
movement of a substance along the food chain "producer - consumer" (feed supply);
movement of the substance in the opposite direction (export of manure to the fields);
the outflow of matter from the agroecosystem (export of finished products to the elevator, meat processing plant, etc.);
the influx of matter into the agroecosystem (delivery of seeds, fertilizers, fuel, machinery, building materials, etc.).
Not all of these articles are equally wasteful. The largest number of A.e. spent on fuel for the operation of agricultural machinery, on the production of fertilizers (primarily nitrogen) and the equipment itself.
The history of agriculture is the history of a consistent increase in the investment of A.e. and energy appreciation of manufactured products. If “from the garden of the Papuans” 15 Cal of food is obtained for 1 Cal of muscle energy, then in a modern highly mechanized and chemicalized economy this ratio is the opposite (15 Cal of A.e. produces 1 Cal of food).
The economic effect of increasing the A.e. obeys the law of diminishing efficiency (for example, to raise the yield of wheat from 10 to 15 centners/ha, much less A.e. is needed than to obtain an additional 5 centners with an initial yield of 25 centners/ha). Therefore, in order to double the yield of agricultural crops in the United States in the first half of this century, it was necessary to increase the investments of A.E. 10 times.
The general trend in the development of modern agriculture is energy conservation.
ANTHROPOGENIC CHANGES IN NATURE- changes occurring in nature as a result of human activities.
ANTHROPOGENIC SUCCESSIONS(A.s.) - ecological successions that occur under the influence of human activity.
A.s. are caused either by a permanent external factor (grazing, trampling, pollution), or represent the process of ecosystem restoration after human disturbance (overgrowth of fallow land, restoration of pastures after the cessation of intensive grazing, restoration of forests in cleared areas, etc.). In the modern biosphere, A.S. play a huge role. Ecological monitoring is needed A.S. in order to predict them further development and development of management approaches A.S. to reduce the harm that man causes to the biosphere.
A.s. very varied. They can have a different duration (from several years to millennia), be progressive (accompanied by an increase in the biological production of ecosystems and their species richness) or regressive (the values of these indicators are decreasing)
ANTHROPOGENIC- owes its origin to human activity. In some scientific publications, the term "anthropic" is found, as a number of authors consider it more accurate.
ANTHROPOGENIC FACTOR- the impact exerted by man and his activities on organisms, biogeocenoses, landscapes, the biosphere (as opposed to natural or natural factors). A.f. can affect entire ecosystems and their parts (organisms, populations, communities, biocenoses). A.f. can be mediated through the influence of biotic factors (during the destruction of certain species or, on the contrary, during the introduction of species) and abiotic factors (influence on climate, pollution of the atmosphere, water, etc.). The result of the action of A.f. there may be disturbances (abrupt changes) or anthropogenic successions.
At present, A.f. are an important factor in the disturbance of the biosphere. To limit the influence of A.f. environmental monitoring and environmental regulation are carried out. Control and decrease in the intensity of the influence of A.f. are one of the main conditions for building a sustainable development society.
AREAL[from lat. area - area, space] - the area of distribution of organisms of a certain species, genus, family or some other systematic category. At present, under the influence of anthropogenic factors, the A. of many plant and animal species associated with natural ecosystems has decreased and become discontinuous.
At the same time, A. species adapted to human economic activity, on the contrary, are expanding. In the steppe zone of the Russian Federation, for example, beyond last years The A. of many species of feather grass (pinnate, Zalessky, the most beautiful, Lessing) sharply decreased and became discontinuous, but the A. of the hairy feather grass resistant to grazing expanded.
A. are investigated by biogeography (botanical geography and zoogeography). These sciences use special classifications of A., which reflect the patterns of distribution of species along a latitudinal gradient (i.e., by zones - arctic, taiga, broad-leaved forests, forest-steppe, steppe, semi-desert, desert), by geographical sectors (Far Eastern, East Siberian, West Siberian, East European, West European, etc.) and along altitudinal zones (Subalpine, Alpine, etc.).
A. of different species differ in size, there are endemic species that are distributed in a small area (sometimes on one mountain top), and, conversely, with A., which cover several continents. Wide A. are characteristic of species whose distribution is associated with human activity.
The analysis of A. species of natural flora and fauna is an element of biological monitoring and a system for the protection of flora and fauna.
AREAL NATURAL- area not changed by human activity.
AREAL ECOLOGICAL- a region where a species can live due to the presence of conditions suitable for it, regardless of where this region is located and whether it is separated by barriers that are insurmountable for the species.
SUSHI ARIDIZATION[from lat. aridus - dry] - a complex and diverse set of processes for reducing the degree of moisture in territories and the resulting reduction in the biological productivity of ecosystems. A. occurs due to both natural (cyclical climate change) and anthropogenic (pumping of groundwater, erosion, dust storms) causes. A consequence of A. is desertification and deepening of the degree of dryness of desert territories. Syn.: Xerotization of the area.
ARID CLIMATE[from lat. aridus - dry] - the dry climate of areas with insufficient atmospheric moisture and high air temperatures, experiencing large daily fluctuations. In the conditions of A.K. landscapes of deserts and semi-deserts predominate, eolian landforms are widespread.
ASBESTOS(A.) - a material having a fibrous structure (contains magnesian silicates, impurities of iron, aluminum, calcium). A. is used for the manufacture of slate, putties, window putties, car gaskets, etc. When abraded products from A., the air is polluted by the smallest fibers invisible to the eye, which are embedded in the human lung tissue and can cause cancer. Experts believe that every fifth patient with lung cancer in the United States fell ill due to the ingestion of A. dust into his lungs. The task is to sharply reduce the amount of A. used in industry, and even completely abandon it. At present, there are already several hundred substitutes for A. In the Russian Federation, the production of slate made on the basis of asbestos cement, meanwhile, continues, and this environmentally hazardous material is widely used in the construction of houses in rural areas and summer cottage construction.
VEGETABLE ASPECT- appearance or physiognomy of the plant community; depends on the floristic composition and layer structure of the community, the occurrence of species and their rhythmological phase.
ASSIMILATE CAPACITY OF A WATER BODY- the ability of a water body to receive a certain mass of pollutants (also a certain amount of heat) per unit of time without violating water quality standards at a control point or water use point.
ASSIMILIATION CAPACITY OF THE ECOSYSTEM- an indicator of the maximum dynamic capacity of the amount of a pollutant that can be accumulated, destroyed, transformed and removed from the ecosystem without disturbing its normal activity per unit of time. A.u.e. depends on many natural and anthropogenic factors, physical and chemical properties of the pollutant; however, biological processes play a decisive role. For example, in the practical assessment of A.e. ocean, 3 main processes can be distinguished: hydrodynamics, microbiological oxidation of organic pollutants, biosedimentation. The term was proposed by Yu.A. Israel.
ASSOCIATION GEOCHEMISTRY[lat. associatio - connection] - a group of chemical elements located in separate natural areas of the surface layer of the earth's crust. Thus, the first AG, formed by hydrogen, carbon, nitrogen and oxygen, corresponds to living matter. The concept of A.G. developed by V.I. Vernadsky and A.E. Fersman.
ASSOCIATION ECOLOGICAL[from lat. associatio - connection] - a group of homogeneous or heterogeneous organisms, populations living together in certain natural conditions. A.e. may be temporary or permanent, depending on environmental conditions and vital needs. Wed Community.
ATMOSPHERE[from gr. atmos - steam and sphaire - ball] - the gaseous shell of the Earth and other celestial bodies. At the earth's surface, it mainly consists of nitrogen (78.08%), oxygen (20.95%), argon (0.93%), water vapor (0.2-2.6%), carbon dioxide (0.03 %). The gas composition of A. serves as "the most striking integral indicator of the state of the biosphere." According to the distribution of temperature with altitude, A. is divided into the following layers: the troposphere (the lower 12-kilometer layer that affects the weather; it contains airborne water vapor, moving with uneven heating of the planet's surface; makes up 2/3 of the mass of the entire A.), where intense atmospheric turbulence is observed and weather processes develop (cloud formation, precipitation, etc.); above the troposphere there is a transition layer - the tropopause, above which the stratosphere (reaches a height of 50 km; it includes the ozone layer with a maximum ozone concentration at a height of 20 to 30 km), the mesosphere (located at an altitude of 50 to 85 km), the thermosphere and exosphere, components together so-called. upper layers a.
ATMOSPHERIC RADIATION- own infrared radiation of the atmosphere and clouds within wavelengths from 4 to 120 microns.
PRECIPITATION- water in a drop liquid (rain, drizzle) and solid (snow, groats, hail) state, falling out of clouds or deposited directly from the air onto the surface of the Earth and objects (dew, drizzle, hoarfrost, ice) as a result of condensation of water vapor in air. A.o. - it is also the amount of water that has fallen in a certain place over a certain period of time (usually measured by the thickness of the layer of fallen water in mm). On average, approx. 1000 mm of precipitation per year, and in deserts and high latitudes - less than 250 mm.
ATMOSPHERIC AIR - a vital component of the natural environment, which is a natural mixture of atmospheric gases located outside residential, industrial and other premises (Law "On the Protection of Atmospheric Air").
NUCLEAR POWER PLANTS(NPP) - power plants that generate energy by "burning" nuclear fuel (controlled thermonuclear reaction). The most important part of a nuclear reactor - fuel elements - is a cassette of rods containing uranium dioxide, enclosed in a shell of a strong alloy of high-quality steel with zirconium. Their service life is about three years, after which the rods become the most dangerous fraction of high-level radioactive waste. They can be reprocessed in a closed nuclear fuel cycle or buried (open fuel cycle).
There are several types of nuclear power plants that use different types of reactors (installations in which heat is obtained from thermonuclear reactions), water reactors, fast breeder reactors, high-temperature reactors, high-power water-graphite reactors (the predominant type of reactors in the countries of the former USSR ). Nuclear power plants affect the environment not only as a result of radioactive contamination, especially during accidents, but also as a strong factor in thermal pollution. The use of thermal waste from nuclear power plants is hampered by their remoteness from large settlements and high power.
Nuclear power plants accumulate radioactive waste. There are strict environmental standards for the maximum allowable radiation exposure of NPP workers.
AUDIT OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEM- a systematic and documented process of reviewing objectively obtained and evaluated audit data to determine the conformity (or nonconformity) of the management system environment adopted in the organization, the criteria for auditing such a system, as well as reporting to the client the results obtained during this process (GOST RISO 14050).
AUDIT OF THE ENVIRONMENTAL MANAGEMENT SYSTEM (internal)— a systematic, documented process of reviewing objectively obtained and assessed data to determine whether an organization's environmental management system meets (or does not meet) the organization's criteria for auditing such a system, as well as reporting to management the results obtained during this process (GOST R ISO 14050).
AUDITOR IN THE FIELD OF ENVIRONMENT (auditor-ecologist)- a person qualified to conduct environmental audits (GOST R ISO 14050).
AUDITING GROUP— one or more auditors assigned to conduct the audit. Note. The audit team may also include technical experts and trainee auditors. One of the auditors in the group acts as lead auditor (GOST R ISO 14050).
AUDITOR DATA- verifiable information, records or statements relating to fact. Note. Audit evidence, which may be qualitative or quantitative, is used by the auditor to determine compliance with the audit criteria. Audit evidence is usually based on interviews, examination of documents, observation of activities and conditions, available measurements and tests, or other means within the scope of the audit. (GOST R ISO 14050).
AUTHECOLOGY(A.) - a section of ecology that studies the influence of environmental factors on individual organisms, populations and species (plants, animals, fungi, bacteria). The task of A. is to identify physiological, morphological, and other adaptations (adaptations) of species to various environmental conditions: moisture regime, high and low temperatures, soil salinity (for plants). In recent years, A. has a new task - to study the mechanisms of response of organisms to various options for chemical and physical contamination (including radioactive contamination) of the environment.
Theoretical basis A. - its laws.
The first law of A. - the law of optimum: for any environmental factor, any organism has certain limits of distribution (limits of tolerance). As a rule, in the center of a number of values of the factor, limited by the limits of tolerance, lies the region of the most favorable conditions for the life of the organism, under which the largest biomass and high population density are formed. On the contrary, at the boundaries of tolerance, there are zones of oppression of organisms, when the density of their populations decreases and species become the most vulnerable to adverse environmental factors, including human influence.
The second law of A. is the individuality of the ecology of species: each species is distributed in its own way for each ecological factor, the distribution curves of different species overlap, but their optimums differ. For this reason, when environmental conditions change in space (for example, from a dry hilltop to a wet log) or in time (when a lake dries up, when grazing increases, when rocks become overgrown), the composition of ecosystems changes gradually. The well-known Russian ecologist L. G. Ramensky formulated this law figuratively: “Species are not a company of soldiers marching in step.”
The third law of A. is the law of limiting (restricting) factors: the most important factor for the distribution of a species is the factor whose values are at a minimum or maximum. For example, in the steppe zone, the limiting factor in the development of plants is moisture (the value is at a minimum) or salinity of the soil (the value is at a maximum), and in the forest zone, its supply with nutrients (the values are at a minimum).
The laws of A. are widely used in agricultural practice, for example, when choosing plant varieties and animal breeds that are most expedient to grow or breed in a particular area.
ACIDIFICATION (soils, natural waters)[from lat. acidus - sour and facere - to do] - an increase in acidity (a decrease in the pH value - pH) of natural components (water, soil); occurs due to the use of physiologically acidic mineral fertilizers and acid precipitation.
ACIDOPHILE(A.) - plants of acidic soils. Typical A., living on the most acidic substrates (pH 3.5-4.5), are plants of sphagnum bogs: cranberries, wild rosemary, sphagnum mosses. On strongly acidic soils, heather, white-bearded, winding pike, and small sorrel also grow. On moderately acidic and slightly acidic soils (pH 4.5-6.5) live bent grass, soddy pike, large rattle. A. can be used as indicators of acidic soils, which has practical applications. For example, the appearance of a large amount of A. in a meadow grass stand indicates an undesirable direction of soil change and the beginning of degeneration of the meadow and, consequently, the need for liming the soil.
AERATION- natural or artificial supply of oxygen to any environment (water, soil, etc.)
AEROBIC- existing or occurring in the presence of oxygen (organism, process, etc.)
SPRAY CAN- a gaseous medium with solid or liquid particles suspended in it. Aerosols include fumes and mists. A. are the most dangerous elements of chemical pollution of the atmosphere. Usually the sizes of particles And. lie within 0,001-1000 microns. The most dangerous for human lungs are particles from 0.5 to 5 microns, larger ones are retained in the nasal cavity, and smaller ones do not settle in the respiratory tract and are exhaled. A distinction is made between dust (solid particles suspended in a gaseous medium), smoke (products of gas condensation), and mists (liquid particles in the air). At present, at least 20 million tons of particles are suspended in the atmosphere, of which approximately 3/4 are emissions from industrial enterprises. Volcanoes, geysers, collapsing rocks, dust storms, soil erosion, and fires serve as natural sources of A.
AEROSPACE RESEARCH METHODS- a variant of remote research methods, a system of methods for studying the properties of landscapes and their changes using helicopters, manned aircraft spaceships, orbital stations and special space vehicles equipped, as a rule, with a variety of imaging equipment. Allocate visual, photographic, electronic and geophysical research methods. Application of A.m.i. speeds up and simplifies the process of mapping and is of great importance in organizing monitoring of the state of the environment.
AIR TAXATION[from gr. aer - air and lat. taxatio - assessment] - a qualitative and quantitative assessment of natural resources (ch. arr., forests) from aircraft by visual determination or analysis of aerial photographs.
AEROTANK- a facility for biological wastewater treatment, which is a reservoir containing aerobic microorganisms and purged with air.

Ecology is the science of the relationship of living beings with each other and with the nature around them, the structure and functioning of superorganismal systems.
The term "ecology" was introduced in 1866 by the German evolutionist Ernst Haeckel. E. Haeckel believed that ecology should study various forms of the struggle for existence. In its primary meaning, ecology is the science of the relationship of organisms to the environment (from the Greek "oikos" - dwelling, residence, shelter).
Ecology, like any science, is characterized by the presence of its own object, subject, tasks and methods (an object is a part of the surrounding world that is studied by this science; the subject of science is the most important essential aspects of its object).
The object of ecology is biological systems of the supraorganismal level: populations, communities, ecosystems (Yu. Odum, 1986).
The subject of ecology is the relationship of organisms and superorganismal systems with their surrounding organic and inorganic environment (E. Haeckel, 1870; R. Whittaker, 1980; T. Fenchil, 1987).
All organisms on Earth exist in certain conditions. That part of nature that surrounds a living organism and with which it directly interacts is called the habitat. Separate properties or elements of the environment that affect the body are called environmental factors. Factors that are necessary for the existence of a particular species are called resource factors. Factors that lead to a decrease in the number of a species (to its elimination) are called elimination factors.
There are three main groups of environmental factors: abiotic, biotic and anthropogenic.

Abiotic factors

General characteristics of the action of environmental factors

Any organism must be adapted in a certain way to the effects of specific environmental factors. Various adaptations of organisms are called adaptations. Due to the variety of adaptations, it is possible to distribute the survival of organisms depending on the intensity of the environmental factor.
The values of the ecological factor that are most favorable for a given species are called optimal, or simply ecological optimum. The same factor values that are unfavorable for a given species are called pessimal, or simply ecological pessimum. There is a law of ecological optimum, according to which the survival of organisms reaches a maximum when the values of this ecological factor are close to its average value.
In the simplest case, the dependence of survival on the action of one factor is described by normal distribution equations, which correspond to bell-shaped normal distribution curves. These curves are otherwise called tolerance curves, or Shelford curves.
As an example, consider the dependence of the density (survival) of a certain plant population on soil acidity.
It can be seen that the populations of this plant species reach their maximum density at pH values close to 6.5 (slightly acidic soils). pH values from approximately 5.5 to 7.5 form for a given species an ecological optimum zone, or a zone of normal life activity. With a decrease or increase in pH, the population density gradually decreases. pH values less than 5.5 and more than 7.5 form two zones of ecological pessimism, or zones of oppression. pH values less than 3.5 and more than 9.5 form death zones in which organisms of this species cannot exist.
ecological niche

An ecological niche is the totality of all connections of a species with its environment, which ensure the existence and reproduction of individuals of a given species in nature.
The term ecological niche was proposed in 1917 by J. Grinnell to characterize the spatial distribution of intraspecific ecological groups.
Initially, the concept of an ecological niche was close to the concept of a habitat. But in 1927, C. Elton defined an ecological niche as the position of a species in a community, emphasizing the particular importance of trophic relationships. Domestic ecologist G.F. Gause expanded this definition: an ecological niche is the place of a species in an ecosystem.
In 1984, S. Spurr and B. Barnes identified three components of a niche: spatial (where), temporal (when) and functional (how). This concept of a niche emphasizes the importance of both the spatial and temporal components of the niche, including its seasonal and diurnal changes, taking into account circadian and circadian biorhythms.

A figurative definition of an ecological niche is often used: a habitat is the address of a species, and an ecological niche is its profession (Yu. Odum).

In 1957-1965. J. Hutchinson defined an ecological niche as a part of an ecological hyperspace in which the existence and reproduction of a species is possible. In ordinary physical space, the position of a point is described by its projection onto three mutually perpendicular coordinate axes. When adding a time coordinate axis, a four-dimensional space-time is formed, which can no longer be represented graphically. Ecological hyperspace is an n-dimensional space in which the coordinates of points are determined by projections on the gradation axis of a set of environmental factors: abiotic, biotic, anthropogenic. Ecological hyperspace differs from the ecological spectrum in that it takes into account the interaction of environmental factors with each other in space and time.
An ecosystem is any unity that includes all organisms and the whole complex of physico-chemical factors and interacts with the external environment. Ecosystems are the basic natural units on the Earth's surface.
The doctrine of ecosystems was created by the English botanist Arthur Tansley (1935).
Ecosystems are characterized by various kinds of metabolism not only between organisms, but also between their living and non-living components. When studying ecosystems, special attention is paid to the functional relationships between organisms, energy flows and the circulation of substances.
The spatial and temporal boundaries of ecosystems can be distinguished quite arbitrarily. An ecosystem can be both durable (for example, the Earth's biosphere) and short-lived (for example, ecosystems of temporary reservoirs). Ecosystems can be natural or artificial. From the point of view of thermodynamics, natural ecosystems are always open systems (they exchange matter and energy with the external environment); artificial ecosystems can be isolated (exchange only energy with the environment).
Biogeocenoses. In parallel with the doctrine of ecosystems, the doctrine of biogeocenoses, created by Vladimir Nikolaevich Sukachev (1942), also developed.
Biogeocenosis is a set of homogeneous natural phenomena (atmosphere, vegetation, wildlife and microorganisms, soil, rocks and hydrological conditions) over a known extent of the earth's surface, which has its own specific interactions of constituent components and a certain type of exchange of matter and energy between themselves and other phenomena nature and representing an internally contradictory unity, located in in constant motion, development.
Biogeocenoses are characterized by the following features:
- biogeocenosis is associated with a certain area of \u200b\u200bthe earth's surface; unlike an ecosystem, the spatial boundaries of biogeocenoses cannot be drawn arbitrarily;
- biogeocenoses exist for a long time;
- biogeocenosis is a bio-inert system, which is a unity of animate and inanimate nature;
- biogeocenosis is an elementary biochorological cell of the biosphere (that is, a biological-spatial unit of the biosphere);
- biogeocenosis is an arena of primary evolutionary transformations (that is, the evolution of populations takes place in specific natural-historical conditions, in specific biogeocenoses).
Thus, like an ecosystem, a biogeocenosis is a unity of a biocenosis and its inanimate habitat; while the basis of biogeocenosis is biocenosis. The concepts of ecosystem and biogeocenosis are outwardly similar, but, in reality, they are different. In other words, any biogeocenosis is an ecosystem, but not any ecosystem is a biogeocenosis.

Productivity of trophic levels
The amount of energy passing through the trophic level per unit area per unit of time is called the productivity of the trophic level. Productivity is measured in kcal/ha·year or other units (in tons of dry matter per 1 ha per year; in milligrams of carbon per 1 sq. meter or 1 cubic meter per day, etc.).
The energy supplied to the trophic level is called gross primary productivity (for producers) or diet (for consumers). Part of this energy is spent on maintaining vital processes (metabolic costs, or breathing costs), part - on the formation of waste products (litter in plants, excrement, moult skins and other waste in animals), part - on biomass growth. Part of the energy spent on biomass growth can be consumed by consumers of the next trophic level.
The energy balance of the trophic level can be written as the following equations:
(1) gross primary productivity = respiration + litter + biomass growth
(2) diet = respiration + waste products + biomass gain
The first equation is applied to producers, the second - to consumers and decomposers.
The difference between the gross primary productivity (ration) and the cost of respiration is called the net primary productivity of the trophic level. The energy that can be consumed by the consumers of the next trophic level is called the secondary productivity of the trophic level in question.
During the transition of energy from one level to another, part of it is irretrievably lost: in the form of thermal radiation (respiration costs), in the form of waste products. Therefore, the amount of highly organized energy is constantly decreasing during the transition from one trophic level to the next. On average, it enters a given trophic level. 10% of the energy received by the previous trophic level; this pattern is called the ten percent rule, or the ecological pyramid rule. Therefore, the number of trophic levels is always limited (4-5 links), for example, already only 1/1000 of the energy received at the first level enters the fourth level.

Ecosystem dynamics
In developing ecosystems, only a part of the biomass growth is spent on the formation of secondary products; accumulation in the ecosystem organic matter. Such ecosystems naturally give way to other types of ecosystems. The natural change of ecosystems in a certain area is called succession. Succession example: lake > overgrown lake > swamp > peat bog > forest.
There are the following forms of successions:
- primary - occur in previously uninhabited areas (for example, on unsodden sands, rocks); biocenoses that initially form under such conditions are called pioneer communities;
- secondary - occur in disturbed habitats (for example, after fires, in clearings);
- reversible - a return to the previously existing ecosystem is possible (for example, birch forest > fire forest > birch forest > spruce forest);
- irreversible - a return to a previously existing ecosystem is impossible (for example, the destruction of relict ecosystems; a relict ecosystem is an ecosystem that has survived from past geological periods);
- Anthropogenic - arising under the influence of human activity.
The accumulation of organic matter and energy at trophic levels leads to an increase in the stability of the ecosystem. In the course of succession, under certain soil and climatic conditions, final climax communities are formed. In climax communities, the entire increase in trophic level biomass is spent on the formation of secondary products. Such ecosystems can exist indefinitely.
In degrading (dependent) ecosystems, the energy balance is negative - the energy received by the lower trophic levels is not enough for the functioning of higher trophic levels. Such ecosystems are unstable and can exist only with additional energy costs (for example, ecosystems of settlements and anthropogenic landscapes). As a rule, in degrading ecosystems, the number of trophic levels is reduced to a minimum, which further increases their instability.

Ideas about the biosphere as an "area of life" and the outer shell of the Earth go back to J. B. Lamarck. The term "biosphere" was introduced by the Austrian geologist Eduard Suess (1875), who understood the biosphere as a thin film of life on the earth's surface, which largely determines the "face of the Earth". However, a holistic doctrine of the biosphere was developed by the Russian scientist Vladimir Ivanovich Vernadsky (1926).
Currently, there are many approaches to the definition of the concept of "biosphere".
The biosphere is the geological shell of the Earth that has developed in the course of the historical development of the organic world.
The biosphere is the active shell of the Earth, in which the combined activity of living organisms manifests itself as a geochemical factor on a planetary scale.
The biosphere is the shell of the Earth, the composition, structure and energy of which are determined by the total vital activity of living organisms; it is the largest known ecosystem.

The structure of the biosphere
The biosphere includes both the vitasphere (the totality of living organisms) and the total results of the activities of pre-existing organisms: the atmosphere, hydrosphere, and lithosphere.
The area in which living organisms regularly meet is called the eubiosphere (actually the biosphere). The total thickness of the eubiosphere. 12-17 km.
In relation to the eubiosphere, the following layers of the biosphere are distinguished:
- apobiosphere - lies above the parabiosphere - living organisms do not occur;
- parabiosphere - lies above the eubiosphere - organisms enter by chance;
- eubiosphere - the biosphere itself, where organisms are found regularly;
- metabiosphere - lies under the eubiosphere - organisms enter by chance;
- Abiosphere - lies under the metabiosphere - living organisms do not occur.
Aerobiosphere - includes the lower part of the atmosphere. The aerobiosphere includes:
a) tropobiosphere - up to a height of 6 ... 7 km;
b) altobiosphere - to the lower boundary of the ozone screen (20...25 km).
The ozone layer is a layer of the atmosphere with a high content of ozone. The ozone screen absorbs the harsh ultraviolet radiation of the Sun, which has a detrimental effect on all living organisms. In recent decades, in the polar regions, there have been " ozone holes» - areas with low ozone content.
Hydrobiosphere - includes the entire hydrosphere. The lower boundary of the hydrobiosphere. 6 ... 7 km, in some cases - up to 11 km. The hydrobiosphere includes:
a) aquabiosphere - rivers, lakes and others fresh water;
b) marinobiosphere - seas and oceans.
Terrabiosphere - land surface. The terrabiosphere includes:
a) phytosphere - the habitat of terrestrial plants;
b) pedosphere - a thin layer of soil.
Lithobiosphere. The lower boundary of the lithobiosphere. 2 ... 3 km (less often - up to 5 ... 6 km) on land and. 1...2 km below the ocean floor. Living organisms in the composition of the lithobiosphere are rare, however, sedimentary rocks in the composition of the biosphere arose under the influence of the vital activity of organisms.
IN AND. Vernadsky identified 7 types of substances in the biosphere: living matter, biogenic matter (fossil fuels, limestones), inert matter (igneous rocks), bio-inert matter (soil), radioactive matter, scattered atoms and matter of cosmic origin.
The functions of living matter in the biosphere are diverse:
- Energy - accumulation of solar energy during photosynthesis; Solar energy powers all life on Earth.
- Gas - the composition of the modern atmosphere (in particular, the content of oxygen and carbon dioxide) has developed, to a large extent, under the influence of the vital activity of organisms.
- Concentration - as a result of the vital activity of organisms, all types of fossil fuels, many ores, soil organic matter, etc. have developed.
- Redox - in the course of the life of living organisms, redox reactions constantly occur, ensuring the circulation and constant transformations of carbon, hydrogen, oxygen, nitrogen, phosphorus, sulfur, iron and other elements.
- Destructive - as a result of the destruction of dead organisms and their metabolic products, living matter is transformed into inert, biogenic and bioinert.
- Environment-forming - organisms in various ways transform the physico-chemical factors of the environment.
- Transport - the transfer of matter against gravity and in the horizontal direction.

The relationship between the components of the biosphere
Plants are producers of organic matter, therefore it is with them that chains of grazing, or pasture chains, always begin in ecosystems. Microorganisms-reducers carry out the transfer of elements from an organic form to an extraorganic one. Chemosynthetic organisms change the oxidation states of elements, transfer them from an insoluble form to a soluble one, and vice versa.
Thus, with the help of plants and microorganisms, the cycle of carbon, oxygen and mineral nutrition elements is carried out.
The total mass of the living matter of the biosphere is 2.500.000.000.000 tons (or 2.5 trillion tons). The annual production of the Earth's plants exceeds 120 billion tons (in terms of dry matter). At the same time, approximately 170 billion tons of carbon dioxide are absorbed, 130 billion tons of water are split, 120 billion tons of oxygen are released, and 400 1015 kilocalories of solar energy are stored. About 2 billion tons of nitrogen and about 6 billion tons of phosphorus, potassium, calcium, magnesium, sulfur, iron and other elements are annually involved in the processes of synthesis and decay. For 2 thousand years, all the oxygen in the atmosphere passes through the plants.
The movement of elements along food chains (networks) is called biogenic migration of atoms. Mobile animals (birds, fish, large mammals) contribute to the movement of elements over considerable distances.

The basic laws of ecology are popularly formulated by the American ecologist B. Commoner.
The first law: "Everything is connected with everything." A small shift in one place environmental
network can cause significant and long-term consequences in a completely different way.
Second Law: Everything has to go somewhere. In essence, this is a reformulation of the well-known law of conservation of matter. B. Commoner writes: “One of the main causes of the current environmental crisis is that huge quantities different substances extracted from the earth, where they were in a bound form, transformed into new, often very active and far from natural compounds "(Closing Circle, 1974).
Third law: "Nature knows best." Sustainable natural ecological systems are the most complex formations, and their organization occurred as a result of evolutionary development, selection from a variety of options. Therefore, it is logical to assume that natural is the best option and each new version will be worse. But this does not mean that nature cannot be changed, improved, adapted to the interests of man, it just needs to be done correctly, based on strict scientific knowledge of nature and foreseeing all possible negative consequences.
The fourth law: "Nothing is given for free" or "You have to pay for everything." The meaning of this law is that the world ecosystem is a single whole and, changing it to some insignificant extent in one
place, we must scientifically foresee what shifts may occur in other places. What a person has taken away from nature or spoiled, he must correct and return. Otherwise, such shifts will begin that are difficult not only to correct, but even to foresee. Changes may develop that will threaten the existence of human civilization.

abiotic environment(from the Greek "a" and "bioticos" - living) - a set of inorganic living conditions for organisms.
Autotrophs(from the Greek "autos" - itself, "trophe" - nutrition) - organisms that can feed on inorganic compounds.
Adaptation(from the Greek “adapto” - I adjust) - the adaptation of the structure and functions of the body to the conditions of existence.
Amensalism- a form of interaction in which one population suppresses another, but itself does not experience a negative effect.
Anthropogenic- caused by human activity, associated with human activity.
anthropocentrism(from the Greek "anthropos" - man, "kenton" - center) - the view that man is the center of the universe and the ultimate goal of the universe.
area(from the Greek "area" - area) - the area of \u200b\u200bdistribution of a given taxon (species, genus, family) in nature.
autecology- a branch of ecology that studies the interaction of individual organisms and species with the environment.
Biogeochemical cycles- cycles of substances; the exchange of matter and energy between various components of the biosphere, due to the vital activity of organisms and having a cyclical nature.
Biogeocenosis- an ecological system that includes communities of different species in certain geological conditions.
Biodiversity- the number of living organisms, species and ecosystems.
Biomass- the total mass of individuals of a species, group of species, related to the area or volume of the habitat.
Biosphere(from the Greek "bios" - life, "sphire" - ball) - the shell of the Earth, in which the living interacts with the non-living.
Biotope- the space that the biocenosis occupies.
Biocenosis(from the Greek "bios" - life, "koinos" general) - a set of populations adapted to living together in a given territory.
View- a natural biological unit, all members of which are connected by participation in a common gene pool.
herbicides- chemicals used to control plants - pests of agriculture.
Heterotrophs(from the Greek "heteros" - different, "trophe" - nutrition) - organisms that feed on plants and animals.
Global(from the Greek "globus" - a ball) - covering the entire Earth.
Humanism(from the Greek "humanus" human) - a worldview based on the principles of equality, justice, humanity.
Degradation(from the French "degradation" - step) - deterioration, loss of qualities.
Demography(from the Greek "demos" - the people, "grapho" - I write) the science of population.
Defoliants- chemicals that cause the leaves of plants to fall off.
Divergence– enhancement of differences between closely related species.
Living matter is the totality of all currently existing organisms.
Pollutants- Substances entering the environment that lead to disruption of the functioning of ecosystems.
Customer- a protected area in which the performance of the function of nature protection is combined with limited economic activity.
Reserve(from "command") - a protected area in which economic activity is prohibited.
industrial society(from Latin "industria" - activity) - a stage of development of society, one of the main characteristics of which is industrial, commodity machine production.
Insecticides- chemicals used to control harmful insects.
Information is a measure of the inhomogeneity of the distribution of matter.
acid rain- rains containing nitrogen oxides and sulfur dioxide.
Commensalism A form of interaction in which one of the two interacting populations benefits.
Convergence- reduction of differences between species under the influence of the evolutionary process.
Consumers(from Latin “consumo” - I consume) - heterotrophic organisms, mainly animals that eat producers.
Cooperation A form of interaction in which both interacting populations benefit.
co-evolution- the co-evolution of two or more species of life.
Red Book- a set of descriptions of rare and endangered species of plants and animals.
A crisis- (from the Greek "krisis" - decision, repeated point, outcome) - a predicament.
culture- (from the Latin "cultura" - cultivation) - the totality of everything specifically that is created by him as a species of Homo sapiens.
Landscape- the main category of territorial division of the geographic shell of the Earth.
Limiting factor- a factor that limits the existence of an organism.
Local(from Latin "localis" - local) - relating to a small area.
Reclamation- improvement of natural lands.
habitat- a site occupied by a part of a population and possessing all the conditions necessary for its existence.
Metabolism- the exchange of substances between the body and the environment.
Modeling- a research method, and another object (model), which is in a certain relationship with it.
Monitoring(from Latin "monitor" - warning) - an observation system, on the basis of which an assessment of the state of the biosphere and its individual elements is given.
Mutation(from the Latin "mutatio" - change) - a change in the genetic code that is inherited.
Mutualism- a form of interaction in which both populations benefit, and they are completely dependent on each other.
Neolithic(from the Greek "neos" - new, "litos" - stone) - a new stone age (10-6 thousand years ago).
neolithic revolution- a fundamental change in the way of farming, expressed in the transition from a hunting and gathering economy to an agricultural and cattle breeding.
Niche ecological- a set of conditions necessary for the existence of a given species.
Noosphere(from the Greek "noos" - mind, "sphaire" - ball) - the sphere of the mind that arises as a result of the appearance of a person on Earth and his interaction with the natural environment.
Obligation- forced connection, without which the population cannot exist.
Ozone screen- atmospheric layer lying at altitudes from 7 km at the poles to 50 km (with the highest ozone density at altitudes of 20-22 km), with an increased concentration of O3 molecules.
organic compounds- Substances containing carbon.
Paleolithic- (from the Greek "palios" - ancient, "litos" - stone) - the ancient stone age (from 2-3 million years ago).
Greenhouse effect- an increase in the concentration in the atmosphere of the so-called greenhouse gases (carbon dioxide, etc.), which absorb the thermal radiation of the earth's surface, which leads to climate warming.
Pesticides- Substances used to control agricultural pests.
population(from Latin "populus" - people) - a set of individuals of the same species that inhabit a certain area of \u200b\u200bfor a long time.
Emission limits (PDV)– maximum amount harmful substances that can enter the environment from the territory of this enterprise.
Maximum Permissible Concentrations (MAC)- the amount of any harmful substance that can be in the environment without significant damage to human health.
Maximum allowable amounts (PDS)- the total indicator of the harmful effects of polluting factors.
Maximum Permissible Levels (MPL)– the level of harmful physical impact (for electromagnetic and noise pollution).
Natural assimilation potential- the ability of the natural environment without prejudice to itself (i.e. to the mechanisms of its functioning and self-healing) to give the products necessary for a person and to produce useful work for him.
Natural resource potential- a part of natural resources that can be really involved in economic activity given the technical and socio-economic capabilities of society, subject to the preservation of the human environment.
Productivity- the total amount of biomass formed over a given period of time.
Producers(from Latin "producentis" - producing) - autotrophic organisms that create food from simple inorganic substances.
Equilibrium- a state in which the individual parameters of the system are unchanged or fluctuate around a certain average value.
Regional(from lat. "regionalis" - regional) - relating to a particular territory.
decomposers(from Latin “reducentis” - returning) - heterotrophic, mainly bacteria and fungi, destroying complex organic compounds and releasing inorganic nutrients suitable for use by producers.
Recreational resources- all phenomena that can be used for recreation: climatic, water, hydro-mineral, forest, mountain, etc.
Reclamation- return of land to a cultural state capable of yielding a crop, or to a natural state.
Recycling - reuse of production waste.
Symbiosis A form of interaction in which both species benefit.
synecology- a branch of ecology that studies the interaction of communities with their environment.
Community The totality of living organisms that make up an ecosystem.
Medium resistance- a set of factors aimed at reducing the size of a population or species.
Habitat- a set of conditions in which a given individual, population or species exists.
Structure(from Latin "structura" - structure) - a set of connections between the elements of the system.
Succession(from Latin "successio" - continuity) - the process of development of an ecosystem from its inception to death, accompanied by a change in the species existing in it.
Toxic Substances(from the Greek "toxikon" - poison) - substances that cause certain diseases and disorders.
Tolerance(from Latin "tolerantia" - patience) - the body's ability to endure the influence of environmental factors.
Trophic- pertaining to nutrition.
Urbanization- the process of growth in the number of cities and an increase in the number of urban residents.
Sustainable development- meeting the needs of the present generation without threatening the future generation to meet their needs.
Phyto- Pertaining to plants.
Fluctuation- a change in any indicator under the influence of external or internal factors.
ecological pyramid – graphic image trophic level ratios. Can be types: abundance, biomass and energy.
Environmental factor- any element of the environment that can have a direct impact on living organisms.
Ecology(from Latin "oikos" - house, "logos" - teaching) - a science that studies the interaction of living organisms with the environment.
Ecosystem- a system that makes up the community and the environment.
Ecotop- the habitat of the community.
Ethics(from the Greek "etos" - teach, disposition) is one of the philosophical disciplines that studies human behavior.

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