Unit 10 – ecology

Ecology is a rather young science, but it is becoming more and more important every day. The word “ecology” means interrelations between man and nature. Ecological studies focus on the relationships between individual (отдельный) organisms and the physical and chemical features of the environment. An ecosystem (ecological system) is dynamic in that its various parts are always in a state of flux (постоянное движение). Since each member of the ecosystem belongs to the environment of every other part of that system, any change in one alters the environment for all the others. And as those components react to the alteration, they in turn continue to transform the environment for the others. The destruction of nature gradually led to the loss of the most essential element of existence, a healthy biological habitat (естественная среда, фауна).

The biosphere is made up of several components: the lower part of the atmosphere, natural waters, microorganisms, plants, animals and the upper part of the earth’s crust. All these components are interrelated and cannot exist without one another. The biosphere, therefore is a unified, complex self-regulating system and a disturbance in any one of its components entails changes¹ in all the others. For example, air pollution (загрязнение) may lead to climatic changes; the water pollution in some countries results in a drinking water shortage (дефицит), etc. Man’s activity, however, is unbalancing the set pattern (устоявшаяся структура) of the biosphere. The modern biosphere differs essentially from the course of natural processes which took shape before man appeared on Earth. The violations (нарушение) of natural processes are different. The circulation of substances and the flow of energy are radically accelerated and increased.

The air we breathe, the earth we live on and its rivers and seas are becoming polluted with ever more dangerous materials – by-products (побочный продукт) of man’s activities. Man depends for his life on what the biosphere provides: water, oxygen, food, etc. But the biosphere is strongly affected by all sorts of human activities. For example, man creates new compounds, new substances, pure chemical elements which are unknown to biosphere. They do not belong to the natural cycle of matter. They weaken the capacity of natural processes for self-regulation. Though not changing biologically, we change the environment in which we live. The science of ecology is closely connected with the environmental protection, which is now being recognized as an integral part of industrial processing². An ecologist should be familiar with the basic problems of physics, chemistry, biology, geology and other sciences.

The main directions of ecological study are chemical, noise and thermal pollution of water, air and soil, caused by industrial activity of man. Man uses natural resources as the material for his creative work³, and nature itself as his workshop. Since ancient times nature has served man, being the sources of his life. For thousand years people thought, that natural resources were unlimited. But with the development of civilization the ecological harmony is disturbed. Modern industry uses ever greater quantities of almost all minerals occurring in the earth’s crust. It is true that the natural resources will not last forever, while human needs know no limits. But it is not oil, coal and other natural resources as such that are important. The important thing is to what extent the main needs of human society for power, food, living space and so on are or will be satisfied (удовлетворять). It is often perceived by the public that control of these problems is the responsibility of governments and people in general are unaware of their input⁴ to the problem or their role in reducing them. For example, the amount of domestic waste⁵ is increasing due to higher living standards and consumption by the general public (население), but the disposal of which is perceived to be a government problem. The same applies to traffic congestion, litter, etc.

Environmental issues of concern⁶ to the general public mainly relate to:

1. municipal waste disposal;

2. environmental damage due to chemicals and emissions from industry⁷;

3. wastes from agriculture;

4. transport and energy production;

5. land use and loss of natural habitats.

The pollution and poisoning of the soil, water and air have reached a critical level. But, if in the past environmental protection was considered a non-profit expense⁸, nowadays good environmental performance⁹ can save money and improve the image of the company.

Now as many as 159 countries – members of UNO – have set up environmental protection agencies, which not only control the pollution level, but also work over the laws, which should help to change people’s attitude to the environmental problems. The international environmental research center has been set up on Lake Baikal. The international organization “Greenpeace” is also doing much to preserve the environment.

The need for qualified specialists on environmental problems brings about training courses of different kinds and levels.

Notes:

1. …entails changes…	– вызывает изменения
2. …industrial processing	– производственные технологии
3. …creative work…	– созидательная работа
4. are unaware of their input	– не осознают своего вклада
5. the amount of domestic waste	– количество бытовых отходов
6. Environmental issues of concern…	– насущные проблемы окружающей среды
7. …emissions from industry	– загрязнение воздуха промышленными предприятиями
8. …a non-profit expense…	– не приносящие прибыль расходы
9. …good environmental performance…	– грамотные действия (эксплуатация) относительно окружающей среды