The essentials of the environment

Preface xi List of Contributors xiii Acknowledgements xv A-Z Listings Acid rain 1 Adiabatic heating and cooling 2 Afforestation 3 Agriculture 4 Air masses & fronts 6 Amensalism 8 Antarctica 10 Anticyclones 11 Artesian basins 13 Atmosphere 14 Battery farming 16 Biodiversity 17 Biofuels 19 Biogeochemical cycles 20 Biomass 22 Biomes 24 Biosphere 28 Carbon cycle 30 Carbon sinks 32 Catalytic converters 33 Caves and karst 34 CFCs 37 Chaparral 39 Chernobyl 41 Clean air acts 43 Contents Clear felling 44 Climate 46 Climate change 48 Clouds 50 Coal 52 Combined heat and power 54 Common Agricultural Policy 55 Competition, predation and parasitism 56 Conservation biology 57 Continental shelf 59 Contour ploughing 61 Convergent evolution 62 Coppicing 63 Coral reefs 64 Crop rotation 66 Cyclones (depressions) 67 Dams 69 Deforestation 71 Demographic transition 73 Desalination 75 Desertification 76 Deserts 78 Dispersion and distribution 79 Earth 81 Earthquakes 83 Ecological efficiency 86 Ecological pyramids 87 Ecological succession 90 Ecology 92 Ecosystems 93 Ecotone 95 El Niño 97 Endangered species, trade in 99 Energy conservation 100 Energy crisis 102 Environmental activism 103 Environmental resistance 105 Environmental studies 106 Eutrophication 108 Extensive farming 109 Famine 111 vi Contents Farm diversification 112 Fertilisers 114 Fertility 115 Flooding 117 Flue gas desulphurisation 118 Food web 120 Forests and forestry 122 Forests, tropical, temperate and taiga 123 Fossil fuels 125 Fuelwood 126 Geographic information systems 127 Geography 129 Geothermal energy 131 Global positioning systems 134 Globalisation 135 Grassland 137 Grazing 139 Green heat 141 Green Revolution 142 Greenhouse effect 144 Greenways 146 Groundwater and aquifers 148 Hurricanes 150 Hydroelectric power 153 Hydrological cycle 154 Incineration 156 Intensive farming 157 Invasive species 158 Irrigation 160 Lakes 162 Landfill 163 Landscape ecology 164 Landslides 165 Leaching 167 Lean-burn engines 168 Levees and embankments 169 Life zone 170 Mangrove forests 173 Microclimates 174 Migration 176 Mining reclamation 178 Contents vii Mining waste 179 Mississippi, The 180 Mortality 182 Mountains 185 Mulch 186 Mutualism and neutralism 187 National parks 188 Natural gas 190 Niche 192 Nile, The 193 Nitrates 194 Nitrogen cycle 195 Nitrogen oxides 197 Noise pollution 198 North Sea oil and gas 199 Northern spotted owl 201 Nuclear power 203 Nuclear waste 204 Ocean currents 205 Oceans 207 Oil 208 Oil spills 209 Organic farming 211 Overfishing 212 Overgrazing 214 Ozone 215 Ozone layer 217 Pesticides 217 Phosphorus cycle 219 Photosynthesis 221 Plate tectonics 222 Polar environments 225 Pollution 226 Population 228 Population density and carrying capacity 230 Population increase 231 Population regulation and control 233 Population structure 235 Prairies 237 Precipitation 238 Production/respiration ratio 239 viii Contents Protected land 241 Radiation balance 242 Rain shadow 244 Recycling 246 Reduce, reuse, recycle 247 Remote sensing 248 Renewable energy 250 Reproductive strategy 251 Reservoirs 253 Reuse 254 Rice 255 Rivers 257 River restoration 259 Salinisation 260 Sea-level rise 261 Sex ratio 262 Shorelines 264 Soil erosion and conservation 266 Soils 267 Solar power 270 Solid waste management 271 Species and organisms 272 Stability 274 Storm surges 276 Sulphur dioxide 277 Survivorship 279 Sustainable development 282 Symbiosis 283 Thunderstorms 284 Tidal power 286 Tornadoes 287 Tourism and ecotourism 289 Toxic and hazardous waste 291 Tsunamis 293 Tundra 295 Urban sprawl 297 Vehicle exhausts 299 Visual pollution 300 Volcanoes 302 Waste disposal 304 Water supply 306 Contents ix Water use 308 Waterfalls 309 Wave power 310 Wetlands 312 Wildfires 314 Wind power and wind farms 315 Woodland ecosystems 316