Introduction

Until recently ecology was a term used by only a few of our

more sophisticated citizens. By the beginning of the 20th century

it found only a modest scientific application in biology: it

denoted the interrelations between living organisms, plants and

animals, and their environment.

Today, the lexicon of ecology contains about 12,000 or

14,000 terms and definitions. Environment, ecosystem, bioecology,

monitoring are among them.

Our environment can be defined as our surroundings; it is

Made up of all the physical, social and cultural aspects of our

world that reflects our growth, our being, and our way of living.

The organized body of knowledge which deals with the

interrelations between living organisms and their environment is

a relatively new science, which we call ecology.

The term is derived from two Greek words meaning "oikos"

(house, dwelling) and "logos" (science). It has been in use only

since the 19th century. Today, the term has been extended to

denote a complex of sciences dealing above all with the

interrelations between man and nature. Man uses natural resources

as the material for his creative work, and nature itself as his

workshop.

Ecosystem is a contraction of ecological system. An

ecosystem refers to a community and the relationships of those

organisms to their environment. An ecosystem is dynamic in that

its various parts are always in a state of flux. Since each

member of the ecosystem belongs to the environment of every other

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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.

Ecosystems are open systems with movement of energy and

material across their boundaries.

Bioecology studies the interrelations between living

organisms and their environment. Traditionally, it is subdivided

into the ecology of micro-organisms, plant ecology and animal

ecology.

There is a group of ecological disciplines including the

ecology of the atmosphere, the ecology of hydrosphere, the ecolo-

gy of soils and lithosphere and, finally, the ecology of outer

space.

Landscape ecology studies the interrelations between various

land ecosystems. The biosphere, the global ecosystem which

exists and develops in time and space, is studied by global

ecology.

The growing human intervention in the biosphere brought

about the need for constant monitoring, i.e. for identification

of the condition of the human environment and the prediction of

possible changes therein relative to man's economic activity.

Man and Nature

Since ancient times Nature has served Man, being the sources

Of his life. For thousands of years people lived in harmony with

environment and it seemed to them that natural riches were

unlimited. But with the development of civilization man's

interference in nature began to increase. The ecological harmony

is disturbed.

Large cities with thousands of smoky industrial enterprises

appear all over the world today. The by-products of their

activity pollute the air we breathe, the water we drink, the land

we grow grain and vegetables. Every year world industry pollutes

the atmosphere with about 1,000 million tons of dust and other

harmful substances. Many cities suffer from smog. Vast forests

are cut and burnt in fire. Their disappearance upsets the oxygen

balance. As a result some rare species of animals, birds, fish

and plants disappear forever, a number of rivers and lakes dry

up.

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The pollution of air and the world's ocean, destruction of

the ozone layer is the result of man's careless interaction with

nature, a sign of ecological crisis.

The destruction of nature gradually led to the loss of the

most essential element of existence, a healthy biological

habitat. Environmental pollution increases the cases of diseases,

raises the cost of medical services, reduces the life-span of a

human being. By now the pollution and poisoning of the soil,

water and air have reached a critical level.

Some progress has been already made in this direction. As

many as 159 countries - members of the UNO - have set up

environmental protection agencies. Numerous conferences have been

held by these agencies to discuss questions of ecologically poor

regions including the Aral Sea, the South Urals, Kuzbass,

Donbass, Semipalatinsk and Chernobyl. The international

environmental research centre has been set up on Lake Baikal. The

International organization Greenpeace is also doing much to

preserve the environment.

Now industrially developed states cannot ignore the problem

of environmental protection. It has become a part of political

programmes in many countries. Many laws and decisions on this

problem have been adopted, many measures have been taken to

protect our forests, rivers, lakes and seas. The importance of

this task is pointed out by ecologists, the scientists who work

to control this problem.

We should consider the state of environment to be as

important as the issues of national unity and the economy. New

legislations have been introduced in developed countries to

strengthen the requirements for adequate environmental assessment

of projects that may have a direct impact on the environment.

Modern ecology has an ethical dimension. The principles of moral

Behaviour embodied in legal norms and coupled with ecological

problems constitute the subject of the interrelation between

ecology and law. There is a necessity to support programs aimed

at the preservation of the environment not only on the national

level but global as well.

As we move towards the next Millennium, the challenge to

humankind, to understand, respect and manage the world and its

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resources, becomes ever more urgent. Sustainable development

focuses on meeting the needs of the present without compromising

the ability of future generations to tackle their own problems.

It is also concerned with social justice and global

responsibilities. In order to achieve sustainable development,

environmental protection should constitute an integral part of

the development process and can not be considered in isolation

from it.

The establishment of satellite geoecological monitoring is

of a great importance for investigations, control and management

of the environment in zones of ecological disasters. General and

regional monitoring programs can provide the complex estimation

of modern landscapes, land use desertification processes. It

should be based on data obtained from aerial and space surveys,

geographic information systems (GIS), maps and other

sources. There is no doubt that maps have been valuable tools

throughout the recent history of environmental studies. The

remote sensing provides a valuable information for weather

services, ocean and atmosphere studies, as well as for

geoecological monitoring, control and management of the

environment.

Exercises