Natural Resources
Anything in the environment used by people
Renewable Resource
Resources that are always available or naturally resplaced in a relatively short period of time
Non-Renewable Resource
Resources that are not replaced in a useful amount of time
Pollution
The contamination of teh Earth's land, water, or air
Environmental Science
The studey of the natural processes that occur in the environment and how humans can affect them
Clear cutting
Cutting down all the trees in the area at once
Selective cutting
Cutting down only some trees in a forest and leaving a mix of tree sizes behind
sustainable yield
An amount of a renewable resource that can be harvested regularly without reducing the future supply
Fishery
An area witha large population of valuable ocean organisms
Aquaculture
Practice of raising fish and oter water dwelling organisms for food
Biodiversity
The number of different species in an area
Keystone Species
A species that influences the survival of many other species in an ecosystem
Niche
organism's role, or job, in its habitat
Extinction
The disappearance of all species from Earth
Endangered Species
Species in danger of becoming extinct in the near future
Threatened Species
Species that could become endangered in the near future
Habitat Destruction
The major cause of extinction, the loss of habitat
Poaching
Illegal killing of wildlife
Captive Breeding
The mating of animals in zoos or wildlife preserves
Habitat Preservation
National Parks where the habitat is preserved and no one can hurt it