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ENVIRONMENTAL TERMS | HISTORY | EXISTING THREATS | THE TIMES
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en·vi·ron·men·tal·ism |
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1. Advocacy for or work toward protecting the natural environment from destruction or pollution. 2. The theory that environment rather than heredity is the primary influence on intellectual growth and cultural development
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con·ser·va·tion
1. The act or
process of conserving.
2. a.
Preservation from loss, damage, or neglect: Valuable manuscripts
were saved from deterioration under the program of library
conservation. b. The controlled use and systematic
protection of natural resources, such as forests, soil, and water
systems. 3. The
maintenance of a physical quantity, such as energy or mass, during a
physical or chemical change.
Although the conservation of natural resources has been recognized
as desirable since ancient times, land use has frequently been poor, with
disastrous results, such as silting of rivers, flooding of lowlands,
uncontrolled livestock grazing, and excessive cutting of woody plants for
fuel. Increasing industrialization continues to present severe
conservation problems, although international efforts have been made in
certain areas, such as the protection of some endangered species. In the United
States, conservation developed gradually with the realization of the need
to conserve natural resources, which in pioneer times seemed unlimited.
Beginning in the 19th century, the Congress of the United States created
the federal forest reserves (later called the national forests), the
national park system, the U.S. Soil Survey, and the Soil Conservation
Service. In 1970 the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) was
established. Conservation falls
into categories that include forests, grazing lands, wildlife, and soil.
The conservation of forests involves three fundamental principles:
protection of trees from fire, insects, and disease— although forest fires
are now recognized as a management tool when carefully employed; proper
harvesting methods and provision for reproduction, either naturally or
artificially by planting; and complete use of all trees harvested. Grazing
ranges are conserved by using only a portion of each range in order to
maintain healthy plant growth and reproduction. Each range is stocked only
with the number of animals that can be nourished properly on the land.
Although these range protection principles are well established, hundreds
of thousands of acres of public lands are still overgrazed. Wildlife is
primarily threatened by the destruction of habitat (as a result of
agriculture and urban expansion) and the fragmentation of habitat into
parcels too small for wildlife populations. Wildlife can be maintained
through careful management and controlled hunting, which allows for the
killing of many species without affecting population levels. Soil
conservation includes the zoning of land for the most suitable use, the
use of soil-building plants in crop rotations, special methods for erosion
control, and the maintenance of soil fertility through the use of chemical
fertilizers.
Conservation, sustainable use
of natural resources. Conservation includes the control of resources for
economic purposes and the maintenance of national parks, wilderness areas,
historic sites, and wildlife. Natural resources are classified as
renewable or nonrenewable. Renewable resources include wildlife and
natural vegetation, and nonrenewable resources are those that cannot be
replaced, such as fossil fuels, ores, and minerals.
