Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
GLOSSARY
Nomina si nescis, perit et cognition rerum.
(If you do not know the names of things,
the very knowledge of them disappears.)
Carl Linnaeus,
Philosophia Botanica
(1751)
more) with trees, whether
native
or non - native. See
also
reforestation
.
Alien species
- See
exotic species.
Alternative stable states
Alternative combina-
tions of
ecosystem
steady states and environmental
conditions that may persist at particular spatial and
temporal scales. A principle thesis of alternative
state models is that the system can shift abruptly
between two or more states, due to positive feedback
mechanisms that operate when a system crosses a
threshold
. See Suding
et al
. (2004) for discussion of
the consequences for restoration ecology.
Anthropocene Era
A term coined by Paul Crutzen
(2002) to characterize the massive human impact
on the environment since the beginning of the
Industrial Revolution, circa 1784, that also acceler-
ated the global process of urbanization.
Arcadian landscape
- See
seminatural landscape.
Assembly rules
A set of principles or laws that
predict the development of specifi c biological
com-
munities
, in contrast to development that is attribut-
able to random processes. Assembly rules identify
environmental fi lters for the dispersal and establish-
ment of species, followed by local species interac-
tions, thus restricting the realm of permissible
species combinations that are likely to assemble from
a larger regional pool of potential contributor species
(Weiher & Keddy 1999 ; Temperton
et al
. 2004 ). See
also
species pool
.
Assisted migration
(synonyms: managed relocation,
assisted colonization)
A new - and highly con-
troversial - conservation tool or strategy to move
species or ecotypes upslope or 'poleward' (i.e. north-
ward in the northern hemisphere, and southward
in the southern hemisphere) to conserve and pro-
tect
biodiversity
in the face of anthropogenic
cli-
mate change
in general, and global warming in
The
fi rst
step
to
wisdom . . . is
getting
things by their right names.
E.O. Wilson ( 1998 , p. 4)
The following defi nitions pertain to their usage in this
topic. Some terms may have broader or additional defi -
nitions that are not listed. Terms in italics in a glossary
defi nition are also defi ned elsewhere in the glossary.
References to chapters can be found via the subject
index.
Abandonment
Temporary or permanent interrup-
tion of previous management regime of a natural,
seminatural or, more often, an agricultural or other
production system; generally induces a
succession
of
the vegetation.
Acidifi cation
A process that results in a lowering of
pH values of a volume of soil or body of water, which
may be caused by natural decalcifi cation due to rain-
fall or by human - induced ' acid rain ' .
Adaptation
Processes by which an organism or
human society adjusts to its biophysical environ-
ment so as to reproduce more or live longer and
better. Adaptations of populations are genetic
responses to natural selection.
Adaptive management
An approach to manage-
ment that encourages periodic changes in manage-
ment objectives and protocols as needed, in response
to monitoring data and other new information.
Afforestation
The planting of open land (land that
has been non-
forest
or
woodland
for 25 years or
