Term | Definition |
Bioaccumulation | The increase in concentration of a substance within a population at one level of a food chain. |
Biomagnification | The increase in concentration of a substance within a number of populations across a number of levels in a food chain. |
Algal Bloom | The rapid and uncontrolled growth of algae. |
Indicator Species | An organisms whose presence or absence can be used to judge the conditions within an ecosystem |
Herbicides | Chemicals used to kill weeds which would compete with crop plants. |
Insecticides | Chemicals used to kill pests insects, such as green fly, that damage crop plants. |
Fungicides | Chemicals used to kill the fungi that damage crop plants. |
Biological Control | The use of a living organism to control a pest species. |
Genetic Modification | The improvement of an organism by adding DNA from another organism into its genetic information. |
Desertification | The creation or enlargement of areas of desert |
Deforestation | Caused when trees are removed and then not replaced. |
Overexploitation | The removal of a resource from the environment faster than it can be replaced. |
Lichen | An indicator species for air pollution. |
Freshwater Invertebrates | This group of organisms can be sampled to show the amount of pollution/concentration of oxygen dissolved in freshwater. |
Leaching | The process in which fertilisers are washed out of the soil into a water environment. |
Pest | These types of organisms have a negative impact on the growth and/or productivity of crop plants. |
Fertilisers | A chemical used to increase the concentration of nutrients in the soil. |
Intensive Farming | Processes which allow farmers to produce more food, at less cost, from a smaller area of land. |