Soils
Define soil mineralogy.
The minerals that vary in their resistance to weathering, and therefore the degree to which elements are made soluble and soils change during soil formation. Some minerals are important stores of nutrients (such as phosphorus, potassium and calcium), which are released slowly as soils weather. Some minerals are characteristic of an Order (for example, the smectite content in Vertisolic soils).
Define wildfire-impacts.
A complex web of nodes and edges where the nodes are issues( e.g. Fire, Land, Water Quality)and the edges are the wildfire impacts on other nodes (e.g. the effects of the fires retardant used on the wildfire on water quality).
State essential facts about the Canada Goose.
The Canada Goose is the goose species most familiar to people living across much of North America, often occurring in large numbers in lakes and parks near cities and towns. This large goose may be anywhere from 30 to 43 inches long with a large body and short tail. Canada Geese may be identified by their brown backs, pale bellies, black necks, and large white “chinstrap.” Male and female Canada Geese are similar to one another in all seasons. The Canada Goose breeds widely across North America. Migratory breeding populations breed across Canada and winter in the northern half of the United States, while many populations living in human-altered environments are non-migratory. The Canada Goose has also been introduced in Britain, Ireland, and portions of western continental Europe. Wild-type Canada Geese breed in lakes and freshwater marshes, wintering in similar habitats. Non-migratory Canada Geese are habitat generalists, living in ponds and lakes as well as human-altered environments (including golf courses, city parks, and reservoirs). This species subsists primarily on plant matter, including aquatic vegetation and terrestrial grasses.
Define lateral meristems.
Lateral meristems in a tree are called cambiums and include the vascular cambium and cork cambium. Both cambiums grow laterally and develop layers of different tissues.
Define what it means to be native, alien, and invasive species.
What are the important soil functions related to soil structure?
1. sustaining biological productivity.
2. regulating and partitioning water and solute flow.
3. cycling and storing nutrients.
List all 10 provincial-scale hydrogeological regions.
- Mountains and Foothills
- McMurray Lowlands
- Western Plains and Benchlands
- Northwestern Lowlands
- Central Plains
- Northeastern Lowlands
- Eastern Plains and Buried Valleys
- Canadian Shield and Athabasca
- Province-Wide Buried Valleys Basin
- Regional Uplands
Name all the twelve families that we should know.
1. Felidae (Cats)
2. Canidae (Dogs, Wolves, Coyotes, African Wild Dogs, etc.)
3. Ursidae (Bears)
4. Mustelidae (Weasels, Badgers, Otters, etc.)
5. Procyonidae (Raccoons, Coatis, Olingos, etc.)
6. Mephitidae (Skunks, Stink Badgers)
7. Herpestidae (Mongooses)
8. Hyaenidae (Hyenas)
9. Viverridae (Civets, Genets, and Linsangs)
10. Otariidae (Sea Lions, Fur Seals)
11. Phocidae (True Seals)
12. Odobenidae (Walrus)
Name all the types of tree root tissues.
- Epidermis - The epidermis is the outermost tissue that is a physical barrier providing protection, insulation, as well as moisture and gas control. The epidermis also absorbs some nutrients and water. As the epidermis wears away and dies off, it is continually replaced by cells from the exodermis.
- Exodermis - The exodermis tissue is right underneath the epidermis and it replaces epidermis tissue as it wears away and dies off. This is very similar to how the inner bark replenishes the outer bark on the trunk which is explained in upcoming sections.
- Cortex - The cortex is a layer of cells that lies directly below the exodermis. The cortex transfers nutrients from the root hairs to the vascular tissue and is used for energy storage. The cortex separates the exodermis from the endodermis.
- Endodermis - The endodermis is the innermost layer of the cells with thicker cell walls. Some of these cells are coated in a water-repellent substance called suberin, which helps keep the endodermis watertight. The endodermis serves to regulate water and nutrient movement between the soil and the vascular tissue.
- Pericycle - The pericycle is composed of tissue that lies just inside the endodermis. The pericycle serves as internal support and protection for the root and it also forms newlateral roots by dividing rapidly in a specific location.
- Vascular Tissue - Vascular tissue is a bundle of cells that transport water and nutrients from the roots to the rest of the tree.
What are the 3 main objectives of WHOs response?
1. Promote actions that both reduce carbon emissions and improve health: supporting a rapid and equitable transition to a clean energy economy; ensuring that health is central to climate change mitigation policy; accelerating mitigation actions that bring the greatest health gains; and mobilizing the strength of the health community to drive policy change and build public support.
2. Build better, more climate-resilient and environmentally sustainable health systems: ensuring core services, environmental sustainability and climate resilience as central components of UHC and primary health care (PHC); supporting health systems to leapfrog to cheaper, more reliable and cleaner solutions, while decarbonizing high- emitting health systems; and mainstreaming climate resilience and environmental sustainability into health service investments, including the capacity of the health workforce.
3. Protect health from the wide range of impacts of climate change: assessing health vulnerabilities and developing health plans; integrating climate risk and implementing climate-informed surveillance and response systems for key risks, such as extreme heat and infectious disease; supporting resilience and adaptation in health-determining sectors such as water and food; and closing the financing gap for health adaptation and resilience.
Define each soil ecosystem service and set one example per each one.
Supporting Soil Ecosystem Services
These services are your “basics.” Without them, soil could not perform any of its other functions.
Regulating Soil Ecosystem Services
These are services that regulate the quality of our air, water, and other resources, and therefore provide controls on climate, flooding, and even disease. An example of a regulating soil ecosystem service could be the ability of soil to clean water by acting as a spongy filter!
Provisioning Soil Ecosystem Services
Soils provide many items for us – things we can use. Food for our hungry bellies (from our farms that grow the food!). Clothes to keep us warm (think cotton, linen and hemp clothing!).
Cultural Soil Ecosystem Services
For millennia, cultures have had a strong link to the soils. Egyptians used soils for paint, as did Native Americans. Other cultures used soils as dyes for their cloth.
Songs and books have been written about soils, and many famous paintings include soils in their landscapes, adding to the non-material benefits that society gets from soil.
What happens when there is pressure in fishing practices?
1. A decrease in the size of fish being caught, indicating that fish are being harvested before they reach their full size.
2. A decrease in the number of adult fish caught, indicating that fish are being caught before they can spawn. This reduces the rate at which the population can be replaced.
3. Complete elimination of a species in a waterbody due to harvesting.
Describe at least 5 common Alberta Wildlife species and a few facts about them.
Badger, Woodland caribou, Black bear, Deer, Coyote, Cougar, Moose, Beaver, Canada lynx, Grizzly bear, Porcupine, Red fox, Pronghorn, Gray wolf, Red squirrel, Striped skunk, Sharp tailed grouse, Canada goose, Mallard, Sandhill crane, American robin, Barn swallow, Boreal capped chickadee, Downy woodpecker, Peregrine falcon, Northern hawk owl, Great horned owl, Northern leopard frog, Western garter snake, and Painted turtle
Define the difference between softwood and hardwood.
In reality, the technical distinction has to do with the reproductive biology of the species. Informally, trees categorized as hardwoods are usually deciduous — meaning they lose their leaves in the autumn. Softwoods are conifers, which have needles rather than traditional leaves and retain them through the winter. And while generally speaking the average hardwood is a good deal harder and more durable than the average softwood, there are examples of deciduous hardwoods that are much softer than the hardest softwoods. An example is balsa, a hardwood that is quite soft when compared to the wood from yew trees, which is quite durable and hard.
Summarize 3 key forest management planning documents.
1. Annual Operating Plan (AOP)
Annual operating plans describe in detail the harvesting and road building activities proposed for the current year.
2. General Development Plan (GDP)
General development plans project activities for the next 5 years. These documents include a forecast of the areas scheduled for harvest.
3. Forest Management Plan (FMP)
A forest management plan turns sustainable forest management commitments into action in the field.
The five most common agroforestry practices are…
1. shelterbelts/windbreaks: Rows of trees or shrubs planted around or within fields and livestock facilities to protect crops, livestock and soil from wind and snow accumulation while also improving biodiversity.
2. riparian tree buffers: A strip of forested land adjacent to a flowing body of fresh water (e.g., stream, lake, wetland). Physically separates agricultural activities from sensitive aquatic areas.
3. alley cropping/tree intercropping: A practice in which crops and trees are interplanted throughout a field. Arable crops are grown between rows of high-value trees to maximize benefits and productivity per unit area of land.
4. silvopasture: The intentional integration of pasture, livestock, and trees. Provides shadeand winter shelter for livestock; increases pasture acreage and diversity, use of existingfarm woodland, forage availability during droughts; diversifies livestock diet; and improves animal welfare.
5. farm woodlands or woodlots: Private enterprises use this farming practice to grow non-timber forest products on private lands, supplement family income, and allow biodiversity to re-establish within woodlands.
List all the councils and alliances partaking in the Watershed Planning and Advisory Councils?
- Athabasca Watershed Council
- Battle River Watershed Alliance
- Bow River Basin Council
- Lesser Slave Watershed Council
- LICA – Beaver River Watershed
- Mighty Peace Watershed Alliance
- Milk River Watershed CouncilCanada
-North Saskatchewan Watershed Alliance
- Oldman Watershed Council
- Red Deer River Watershed Alliance
- South East Alberta Watershed Alliance
Finish the sentence: Each park identifies..
Each park identifies 2–4 ecosystems (e.g. forest, freshwater, tundra) and selects 5 of the best indicators of how each ecosystem is doing. Each ecosystem must have at least:
• one species indicator (e.g. number of songbirds)
• one process indicator (e.g. fire frequency)
• one indicator of a stress on the ecosystem (e.g. water quality)
In brief, you should know that satellite imagery…
In short, recent satellite imagery is a powerful tool to help monitor, verify and investigate an area of interest before heading into the field. Identifying whether tree cover loss has occurred before investigating on the ground can save you time, money and other resources and allow you to focus your efforts on where forest threats are actually occurring. Additionally, it can be used in reports, policy briefs, presentations and throughout the media to show where deforestation has likely occurred and its likely cause.
Name what are the must-haves and the good-to-haves for plant identification.
Must-haves:
Good-to-haves:
What are the agricultural classification factors listed in the Soils document?
1) The soils will be well managed and cropped, under a largely mechanized system.
2) Land requiring improvements, including clearing, that can be made economically by the farmer, is classed according to its limitations or hazards in use after the improvements have been made. Land requiring improvements beyond the means of the farmer is classed according to its present condition.
3) The following are not considered: distances to marker, kind of roads, location , size of farms, type of ownership, cultural patters, skill or resources of individual operations, and hazard of crop damage by storms.
4) The classification does not include capability of soils for trees, tree fruits, small fruits, ornamental plants, recreation, or wildlife.
5) The classes are based on the intensity, rather than kinds, of their limitations for agriculture. Each class includes many kinds of soil, and many of the soils in any class require unique management and treatment.
6) Land given a capability classification of 6 or 7 will never warrant irrigation since the benefits derived from irrigation would be negligible.
*** For this reason, capability Classes 6 and 7 will always appear in the non-irrigated portion (Classes A to C) of a land unit classification.
Name at least four specific land management practices near natural wetlands.
Define risk status and explain what the species at risk cycle is.
Risk status: To help us understand the stability of Alberta's wild species and the level ofmonitoring and protection they may need, each species is assigned a status.
Forestry applications of remote sensing include…
1. Reconnaissance mapping:
Objectives to be met by national forest/environment agencies include forest cover updating, depletion monitoring, and measuring biophysical properties of forest stands.
2. Commercial forestry:
Of importance to commercial forestry companies and to resource management agencies are inventory and mapping applications: collecting harvest information, updating of inventory information for timber supply, broad forest type, vegetation density, and biomass measurements.
3. Environmental monitoring:
Conservation authorities are concerned with monitoring the quantity, health, and diversity of the Earth's forests.
There are __ sections of important themes regarding UNDRIP. Name them all.