IDSB02H3 Lecture Notes - Lecture 6: International Tropical Timber Organization, Secondary Forest, Soil Science
6 Feb 2018
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Document Summary
Interactions between environment and development: historical/archeological/anthropological context, contemporary international development discourse. Fundamental principles of environmental science: soil science, climatology, hydrology. Explore contemporary issues, debates, trends, policy and practice, at the interface of environment and development. Organized around different ecosystems or environmental issues. In a tropical rainforest, trees create local water systems just as much as they are created by it. For instance, between 1/3 and of rainfall is water that has been transpired by forests immediately upwind. A function of rainfall and the balance between precipitation and evapotranspiration. Two general common types of tropical forests: wet: precip>aet all year, humid: several months in a row where pet> precip, so some deciduous trees, but soil never dries out. Tropical rainforests protect soils, reduce erosion and compaction. Debris on soil surface and diverse understory acts like sponge, uptakes the surface water. Closed canopy shields soil from high impact of large water droplets. If absent, then there is a large runoff potential.
