Conservation of Living Nature and Resources: Problems, Trends, and Prospects

ISBN-13: 9783642753787 / Angielski / Miękka / 2012 / 271 str.

Alexey V. Yablokov; Sergey A. Ostroumov

Opis

The deterioration of the environment has become one of the most serious problems of the 20th century. We are faced with increasing global problems - hunger and desertification, depletion of natural resources and deficiency of energy, pollution and man-triggered changes of climate. Presenting many new facts and examples from environmental studies in East and West, part I analyzes the problems of conservation at all main levels of life: the molecular-genetic, the ontogenetic, the species-population, and the ecosystem level. After an appraisal of present conditions, the authors show which changes in the different sectors of society (including agriculture, industry, recreation, etc.) are necessary to solve our environmental problems.

Spis treści

I.- 1 The Dangerous Extent of Human Impact on the Biosphere.- 1.1 Use and Transformation of Land Surface.- 1.2 Exploitation of Natural Resources and Pollution of the Biosphere.- 2 Molecular-Genetic Level.- 2.1 Effects on Structural and Functional Systems of the Cell.- 2.2 Biotransformation and Biodegradation of Pollutants.- 3 Problems at the Ontogenetic Level.- 3.1 Changes in Embryogenesis.- 3.2 Disturbance of Growth.- 3.3 Disturbance of Reproduction.- 3.4 Metabolic Disturbances, Poisoning and Diseases.- 3.5 Conclusions.- 4 Problems at the Species-Population Level.- 4.1 General Characteristics of Species Disappearance.- 4.2 Causes of Species Disappearance.- 4.3 Importance of the Minimal Number of the Population.- 4.4 Conclusions.- 5 Problems at the Ecosystem Level.- 5.1 Changes in Ecosystem Structure.- 5.2 Disturbance of Interspecies Interactions.- 5.3 Breakage of Information Flows in Ecosystems.- 5.4 Destruction of Vegetation Cover in Toto.- 5.5 Transfer of Toxic Substances by Migrating Animals.- 5.6 Bioaccumulation of Pollutants and Their Transfer Through Trophic Chains.- 5.7 Acid Precipitations.- 5.8 Changes in Primary Productivity.- 5.9 Conservation Problems in Some Important Ecosystems.- 5.10 Conclusions.- 6 Economic Problems in the Protection of Living Nature.- 7 Organizational and Legal Problems of the Protection of Living Nature.- 7.1 Problems to Be Treated on an International Level.- 7.2 Problems to Be Treated on a National Level.- 8 Problems of Prognostication.- 8.1 Molecular Level.- 8.2 Onthogenetic Level.- 8.3 Populations and Species Level.- 8.4 Ecosystem and Biosphere Levels.- 8.5 Forecasts of the Ecological Consequences of a Nuclear War.- II Prospects for the Protection of Living Nature.- 9 Protection of Living Nature and its Connection with Other Global Problems.- 9.1 “Nuclear Winter” and Disarmament.- 9.2 Demographic Problem and Need for Stabilization.- 9.3 Reduction of the Biosphere Pollution Rate.- 10 Need for Ecologization of Society’s Activities.- 10.1 Need for Ecologization of Agriculture.- 10.2 Need for Ecologization of the Economic Forms of Biosphere Utilization.- 10.3 Need for Ecologization of Industry and Transport.- 10.4 Need for Ecologization of the Economy.- 10.5 Need for Ecologization of the Urban Environment.- 10.6 Need for Ecologization of Medicine.- 10.7 Need for Ecologization of Politics and Law.- 11 Ways of Preserving Living Nature.- 11.1 Protection in Natural Habitats.- 11.2 Captive Breeding.- 11.3 Domestication and Cultivation.- 11.4 Ecological Engineering.- 11.5 Genetic Banks.- 11.6 Regulated Evolution.- 12 Scientific Foundations and Theory of Living Nature Protection Within the System of Biological Science.- 12.1 Biological Sciences and the Scientific Foundations of Living Nature Protection.- 12.2 Axiomatization of the Theoretical Foundations of Living Nature Protection.- 12.3 Conclusion.- Index of Authors.

O autorze

Pollution and destruction of nature by man deprives mankind of its own bases of life. Numerous alarming data of environmental studies in east and west as well as possibilities to solve these problems are given.