What is ecology and why is it needed? Ecology in the modern world

Ecology is the science of the interaction of flora, fauna and humanity with each other and the environment.

What does ecology study?? The objects of ecology study can be individual populations, genera, families, biocenoses, etc. At the same time, the relationships between different organisms and their effects on natural systems are studied.

Ecological problems

The main environmental problems are:

• Extermination of flora and fauna;
• unsustainable mining;
• pollution of the world's oceans and atmosphere;
• ozone layer depletion;
• reduction of fertile lands;
• destruction of natural landscapes.

History of environmental development

To the question: “What is ecology?” tried to answer long before our era, when people first began to think about the world around them and human interaction with it. The ancient scientists Aristotle and Hippocrates touched on this topic in their treatises.

The term “ecology” was proposed in 1866 by the German scientist E. Haeckel, who described the relationship between living and inanimate nature in his work “General Morphology”.

Stages of development

There are 4 stages of environmental development

Stage I. The first stage is associated with the work of ancient philosophers and their students, who collected information about the world around them and studied the basics of morphology and anatomy.

Stage II. The second stage began with the advent of the term “ecology” in science; during this period Darwin worked actively, with his evolutionary theory and natural selection, which became central issues for the ecological science of those times.

Stage III. The third stage is characterized by the accumulation of information and its systematization. Vernadsky creates the doctrine of the biosphere. The first textbooks and brochures on ecology appear.

Stage IV. The fourth stage continues to this day and is associated with the massive dissemination of environmental principles and laws in all countries. Environmental problems have become a pressing issue of international importance. Now ecology is studying these problems and finding the optimal solution.

The basic environmental laws were formulated by Barry Commoner, and they sound like this:

First Law- everything is connected to everything.

Human actions always affect the state of the environment, causing harm or benefit. In the future, according to the law of feedback, this influence will affect the person.

Second Law- everything has to go somewhere.

The issue of waste disposal is very acute. This law confirms that it is not enough to simply create landfills for garbage; it is necessary to develop technologies for its processing, otherwise the consequences will be unpredictable.

Third Law- nature “knows” better.

There is no need to try to restructure nature for yourself; massive cutting down of trees, drying out swamps, and attempts to control natural phenomena do not lead to anything good. Everything created before man went through many tests on the path of evolution and only a few were able to survive to this day, so you should not interfere in the world around you every time to satisfy your needs.

Fourth Law- nothing comes for free.

This law reminds people that they need to use natural resources rationally. By saving on environmental protection, humanity is doomed to diseases caused by deteriorating quality of water, air, and food.

Ecological tasks

1. The study of the influence of the environment on the life of the organisms that live in it.
2. Studying the role of man and his anthropogenic impact on natural systems.
3. Study of adaptation mechanisms to changing environmental conditions.
4. Preserving the integrity of the biosphere.
5. Development of rational plans for the use of natural resources.
6. Prediction of adverse consequences for the environment due to anthropogenic influence.
7. Protecting nature and restoring lost natural systems.
8. Propaganda among the population of a culture of behavior and respect for nature.
9. Development of technologies that can solve the main environmental problems - air and water pollution, accumulation of unprocessed waste.

How does ecology affect humans?

There are three types of environmental influences on the human body:

• Abiotic- the action of inanimate nature.
• Biotic- influence of living beings.
• Anthropogenic– consequences of human influence.

Fresh air, clean water, and a moderate amount of ultraviolet radiation have a beneficial effect on humans. Watching animals and making friends with them brings aesthetic pleasure.

The adverse effects are mainly associated with the activities of the person himself. Air polluted with chemicals and toxic substances causes significant damage to health. Fertilizing the soil, killing crop pests with toxic agents, and introducing growth stimulants negatively affect the condition of the soil; as a result, we consume foods high in toxins, which leads to the development of gastrointestinal pathology.

Why is it necessary to preserve the environment?

We are surrounded by modern technology that makes life easier and more comfortable. Every day we use transport, mobile phones and many other things that are gradually destroying the environment. This further affects the health of the population and life expectancy.

Today, the environment is in a difficult state: natural resources are running out, many species of animals and plants are on the verge of extinction, acid rain is increasingly occurring, the number of ozone holes is increasing, etc.

Such an unfavorable situation leads to changes in ecosystems; entire areas become unsuitable for human and animal habitation. The number of cancer diseases, heart pathologies, disorders of the nervous system, and respiratory organs is growing. Increasingly, children are born with congenital defects and chronic diseases (bronchial asthma, allergies).

Humanity must think as soon as possible about its harmful impact on the world around us and begin to solve global environmental problems. A person cannot live without oxygen for even five minutes, but every day the air is increasingly polluted by people: exhaust gases, waste from industrial enterprises.

Water shortage will lead to the extinction of all flora and fauna and climate change. Clean water is also necessary for a person who may die from dehydration or serious diseases that are transmitted through water.

Therefore, every person needs to take care of the environment, starting with cleaning the yard, streets, checking the technical condition of the car, and observing waste disposal rules. People must stop destroying their own home, otherwise the threat of extinction of life on the planet will become real.

Ecology (from the Greek oikos - house and logos - teaching) is the science of the laws of interaction of living organisms with their environment.

The founder of ecology is considered to be the German biologist E. Haeckel (1834-1919), who first used the term “ecology” in 1866. He wrote: “By ecology we mean the general science of the relationship between an organism and the environment, where we include all “conditions of existence” in the broad sense of the word. They are partly organic and partly inorganic in nature.”

This science was originally biology, which studies populations of animals and plants in their environment.

Ecology studies systems at a level above the individual organism. The main objects of its study are:

population – a group of organisms belonging to the same or similar species and occupying a certain territory; an ecosystem that includes a biotic community (a set of populations on...

Science often runs counter to religion and “everyday” knowledge. Science offers a person a really good understanding of the phenomenon being studied and obtaining high-quality and verified data. Let's talk a little about the science of ecology.

Subject of study of ecology

What does ecology study? Ecology is a special section of general biology. She studies the interaction of living organisms, their adaptation to life with each other. Ecology also studies the nature of the connection and dependence of living beings on the conditions of their existence.

It is known that in the course of evolution, the fittest species survive by being able to adapt themselves to environmental conditions. This law of survival applies to absolutely all living organisms without exception. The theory of natural selection was created and developed by Charles Darwin.

Types of ecology science

Ecology covers a wide range of issues. First of all, environmental factors and complexes of these factors are studied. The answer is given to the question of how...

In the twentieth century, having separated from biology into a separate science, ecology began its life. This discipline immediately began to gain popularity. Until now, it continues to develop rapidly. Although it covers a fairly wide range of questions, probably everyone can roughly answer if you ask him: “What does ecology study?” The subject of research of this science by different specialists is usually characterized in the same way. Thus, answering the question of what ecology studies, they say quite simply: the object of study is the interaction of living organisms with their permanent habitat. In order to make it more clear, a detailed explanation is necessary.

Firstly, these are living organisms. If we consider them individually, they are influenced by three main groups of factors:

– habitat (this may include air humidity, vegetation, level of illumination of the area, air temperature at night and during the day, relief and others...

Planet Earth is a small blue pearl, lost in the endless cold worlds of outer space and which has become home to billions of living beings. Literally the entire space of our world is permeated with life: water, land, air.

And all this diversity of living forms, starting with the simplest microorganisms and ending with the pinnacle of evolution - Homo sapiens - can have the most direct impact on the life of the planet. Ecology is a science that studies the interaction of all living organisms inhabiting the Earth, as well as their numerous communities, both among themselves and with their environment.

A little history

Many modern people do not know that ecology began to develop as a separate branch of science only in the middle of the 20th century. Until this time, it was only a part of biology. And the founder of ecology was an ardent adherent and supporter of Darwin's theory, a talented naturalist and biologist - the German E. Haeckel.

The formation of ecology as a separate science was influenced by: on the one hand, the strengthening of scientific and technological progress in the 20th century, and on the other, the rapid growth of the population of our planet. The development of technology and industry has led to a manifold increase in the consumption of natural resources, which, in turn, has had a detrimental effect on the environment.

While the number of people was rapidly increasing, the number of other living beings began to steadily decrease. NTP allowed people to make their stay on the planet as comfortable as possible, but at the same time it served as a disastrous factor for nature. There is an urgent need for operational study and research of the habitat. The connection between ecology and other sciences has become inevitable.

Fundamentals of ecology science

The fundamentals of ecology include the study of the interaction with the environment of objects organized at the species, biosphere, organismal and biocentric levels. Thus, we can distinguish several main sections that general ecology includes:

• Autecology, or the ecology of organisms, is a section that deals with the study of individual connections with the environment of both each individual species and organisms included in the general species group.
• Demecology, or ecology of populations. The objectives of this section are to study the natural mechanisms responsible for regulating the number of different living organisms, their optimal density, as well as identifying acceptable limits for the removal of various species and populations.
• Synecology, or community ecology, studies in detail the interaction of ecosystems and populations with the natural environment, as well as the mechanisms and structure of biogeocenoses.

Methods of environmental research

uses a variety of methods to conduct research. However, all of them can be divided into two categories: field methods and laboratory methods.

From the names themselves, you can understand that all field research work is carried out directly in the natural environment. They, in turn, can be divided into:

• Stationary. These studies include both long-term observation of natural objects and measurements, detailed descriptions, as well as an instrumental report.
• Route. Direct observations of the object are carried out, its condition is assessed, measurements and descriptions are made, maps and diagrams are drawn up.
• Descriptive - during initial acquaintance with the object of research.
• Experimental. The main thing here is experience and experiment, various chemical analyzes, quantitative assessment, etc.

Laboratory methods are based on conducting research in laboratory conditions. Since ecology is a science that studies the combination of a huge number of factors, a special place in the practical study of biological objects is given to the modeling method.

Living environment of living organisms

In order to more accurately understand how certain environmental factors influence different living species, it is necessary to first understand the relationship between the habitat and the life of various objects. The diverse natural conditions that occur on our Earth - water, land-air, soil, organisms - provide a living environment for a wide variety of plant and animal species. It is from the environment that all living things receive the substances necessary for life. And the metabolic products of living organisms return there.

Thus, it was the difference in living conditions in different environments that made it possible for different organisms to develop a set of specific physiological, morphological, behavioral and other various properties that help them adapt as much as possible to difficult living conditions.

Environmental factors

The fundamentals of ecology as a science attach great importance to individual environmental factors. The latter should be understood as any elements or environmental conditions that force certain organisms to adapt to them and adapt. There are only three groups of environmental factors:

• biotic;
• abiotic;
• anthropogenic.

Biotic factors include various properties of living nature. They are capable of causing adaptive reactions in both plants (phytogenic), animals (zoogenic) and fungi (mycogenic).

Abiotic, on the contrary, are components of inanimate nature: geological (glacial movements, volcanic activity, radiation, etc.), climatic (temperature, light, wind, humidity, pressure, etc.), soil (structure, density and composition of the soil) , as well as hydrological factors (water, pressure, salinity, current).

Anthropogenic environmental factors relate to human activity. It must be said that it is man who causes very serious shifts in biogeocenoses. Moreover, for some species this becomes favorable, but for others it does not.

Environmental problems of our time

Today's problems are mainly related to the anthropogenic impact on nature. Global ecology heralds the following serious dangers: depletion of the ozone layer, the greenhouse effect, environmental pollution and the problem of disposal of human waste, soil degradation and erosion, desertification, widespread extinction of animals, climate change, general weakening of human immunity, depletion of resources (water, gas, oil, other natural resources), photochemical smog and other fatal changes.

All this is largely provoked by the active intervention of people in natural processes, as well as the unreasonable implementation of recreational, military, economic and other plans that change the natural habitat.

Environmental pollution

Ecology is a science that studies, among other things, (the biosphere). In this case, pollution is understood as the active entry into the biosphere of energy or substances, the quantity, location or properties of which can negatively affect the habitat of various living species.

Industrial development and global urbanization lead to pollution of the surrounding space not only with solid, liquid and gaseous substances and microorganisms, but also with various energies (sounds, noise, radiation), which adversely affect various ecosystems of the planet.

There are two types of biosphere pollution, differing in origin: natural (natural) - occurs without the participation of people, and anthropogenic. The latter is much more dangerous, since man has not yet learned to restore his habitat.

Nowadays, pollution is occurring at a monstrous pace and concerns atmospheric air, underground and surface water sources, and soil. Humanity has polluted even near-Earth space. All this does not add optimism to people and can provoke a worldwide The rapid development of ecology as a science gives humanity a chance to avoid the threat.

Soil pollution

As a result of careless, unreasonable human activity, the soil around large cities and territories where large industrial metallurgical enterprises, thermal power plants, and mechanical engineering enterprises are located has become contaminated over vast distances.

Heavy metals, petroleum products, sulfur and lead compounds together with household waste - this is what the modern habitat of a civilized person is saturated with. Any ecology institute will confirm that, along with the above substances, the soil contains in abundance various carcinogenic substances that have the ability to cause terrible diseases in people.

The land that feeds us is not only subject to erosion and pollution by harmful chemical elements, but also becomes swamped, salinized, and taken away for the construction of various structures. And if the natural destruction of the surface fertile layer can occur very slowly, then erosion caused by anthropogenic activity is striking in its accelerated pace.

Agriculture with abundant use of pesticides is becoming a real scourge for humanity. The greatest danger in this case is represented by stable chlorine compounds that can persist in the soil for many years and accumulate in it.

Air pollution

The next major environmental threat is air pollution. Again, it can also be caused by natural factors, for example, volcanic activity, flowering plants, smoke from burning forests or wind erosion. But anthropogenic impact causes much more harm to the atmosphere.

Anthropogenic or technogenic air pollution occurs due to the release of large amounts of certain harmful substances into the atmosphere. The chemical industry causes particular harm in this regard. Thanks to it, sulfur dioxide, nitrogen oxides, hydrogen sulfide, hydrocarbons, halogens and other substances are released into the air. By entering into chemical reactions with each other, they are capable of forming very dangerous, highly toxic compounds.

The situation is aggravated by car exhaust. In most large cities, photochemical smog has become common in calm weather.

Pollution of the planet's water supplies

Life on the planet is impossible without water, but in our time, environmental studies have forced scientists to come to the bitter conclusion: anthropological activities have a detrimental effect on the Earth's hydrosphere. Natural reserves of fresh water are declining, and even the vast World Ocean is today undergoing global changes in its ecosystem, and therefore many marine inhabitants are doomed to extinction.

Particularly alarming is the fact that not only surface waters are polluted, but also underground ones, the condition of which is affected not only by waste from industrial enterprises, but also by numerous city landfills, sewage drains, waste from livestock complexes, and storage facilities for fertilizers and chemicals. On top of everything else, civilization cannot do without major accidents. Emergency discharges of waste into water bodies are not such a rare occurrence.

Relationship between ecology and other sciences

First of all, ecology is a science that studies environmental problems, and it alone cannot correct the current situation. Now that it has become clear how alarming the situation is in different ecosystems, it becomes even clearer how important the connection between ecology and other sciences is. Without close interaction with medicine, biology, chemistry, physics and some other scientific fields, it will simply be impossible to actively solve environmental problems.

Scientists will have to make joint efforts to try to minimize the harm that humans cause to nature. Scientists from different countries are urgently looking for safe energy sources. In some countries, the share of vehicles powered by electricity has already increased significantly. Much depends on the efforts of chemists; in the new century they will have to radically solve the problem of minimizing the harm of industrial waste. All areas of ecology must necessarily be involved in solving common problems.

Environmental situation in Russia

Unfortunately, Russia's ecology is far from being in the best condition. According to authoritative ecologists, our country is one of the three states that most actively pollute the planet’s ecosystem. In addition to Russia, the shameful list also includes China and the United States.

The situation is further aggravated by the fact that while the most developed European countries spend annually up to 6% of their budget on environmental protection measures, in Russia these costs do not even reach 1%. The authorities stubbornly refuse to respond to attempts by environmentalists to draw their attention to the deplorable state of affairs in this area.

Meanwhile, the ecology of Russia is causing concern to the entire world community, since the territories it occupies are truly huge, there are a lot of industrial enterprises, waste is not processed or disposed of properly, and against the backdrop of the economic crisis, all this looks simply threatening.

The influence of ecology on human health

It has already been said above how harmful environmental factors adversely affect human health. First of all, this, of course, concerns children, because this is our future. But what will this future be like if a little person from the cradle has to breathe polluted air, eat foods that contain harmful chemical preservatives, drink water only from plastic bottles, etc.?

In recent years, doctors have been emphasizing that the incidence of bronchopulmonary diseases is becoming higher and higher. The number of allergy sufferers is growing, and most of them, again, are children. All over the world there is an increase in diseases associated with immunodeficiency conditions. It can be assumed that if humanity does not come to its senses in the near future and does not try to enter into a peaceful harmonious union with Mother Nature, then in the not too distant future we may suffer the fate of many extinct species. It must be remembered that they are inextricably linked.

2014 is the year of ecology

Every year, many events are held in our country dedicated to educational activities on environmental issues. And 2014 was no exception. Thus, since the beginning of the year, a large-scale competition “National Environmental Award “ERAECO” has been held in Russia. As part of this event, films on environmental topics are shown in different cities of Russia, festivals and lectures are held.

There will also be presentations on eco-building and demonstrations of the capabilities of ecological farms in Moscow and the Moscow region. Eco-lessons were held in schools, during which children were told about environmental problems and various environmental issues were discussed in detail.

The organizers of "ERAECO" are planning to open a mobile ecological mini-laboratory, with the help of which it will be possible to carry out express analyzes of samples taken from water, air and soil. The experts of the laboratory, with the support of environmental specialists, will be schoolchildren of different ages and students.

“Eco-patrol” units will be formed, which will continue their activities not only during the competition, but also after its end. Children of primary school age will also be able to join in many interesting activities, and after that they will be asked to create a visual report in drawings.

International cooperation in environmental protection

Our planet is one, and despite the fact that people have divided it into many different countries and states, solving pressing environmental issues requires unification. Such cooperation is carried out within the framework of international programs of organizations such as UNESCO and the UN, and is regulated by interstate agreements.

Principles of environmental cooperation were developed. One of them states that the environmental well-being of any state should not be ensured without taking into account the interests of other countries or at their expense. For example, it is unacceptable for stronger countries to use the natural resources of underdeveloped world regions.

Another principle proclaims that mandatory control over threatening changes in the environment must be established at all levels and all states are obliged to provide every possible assistance to each other in complex environmental problems and emergency situations.

It is important to realize that only by uniting will humanity be able to save the Earth from the impending ecological collapse. From now on, every citizen of the planet must understand this.

Today it is difficult to overestimate the importance and role of ecology both in the life of the whole society and separately in the life of each person. Likewise, the state of the planet depends both on commercial companies that produce tons of waste every year, and on the individual who enjoys the benefits of civilization.

A little history

Throughout known history, humanity has developed and, along with it, its concepts about the world around us have developed. Very early, people realized that natural gifts must be used wisely, without destroying the natural balance between man and the planet.

This is confirmed by rock paintings that speak of human interest in the environment.

From more recent data it is known that nature conservation was actively practiced in Ancient Greece, where residents protected the beauty of natural forests.

Modern look

Now ecology is interpreted as a science that studies the interaction of living organisms with each other, as well as with the environment.

Any organism living on the planet is influenced by many factors: favorable and unfavorable. All these factors can be divided into two groups: biotic and abiotic. Biotic include those that come from living nature; to abiotic - those carried by inanimate nature. For example, an orchid growing on the bark of a tree is an example of symbiosis, that is, a biotic factor, but the direction of the wind and weather conditions affecting these two organisms are already an abiotic factor. All this creates conditions for the natural evolution of living organisms on the planet.

But here another important aspect appears that significantly influences the state of the environment - this is the anthropogenic factor, or the human factor. Deforestation, diversion of rivers, mining and development of minerals, release of various toxins and other wastes - all this affects the environment where such impacts are produced. As a result, biotic and abiotic factors in this area undergo changes, and some of them even disappear.

In order to regulate environmental changes, scientists have identified the main tasks that ecology must solve, namely: the development of laws for the reasonable use of natural resources, based on the general principles of the organization of life, as well as the timely solution of environmental problems.

For this, environmental scientists have identified four basic laws:

1. everything is connected to everything;
2. nothing disappears into nowhere;
3. nature knows best;
4. nothing is given for nothing.

It would seem that compliance with all these rules should lead to a reasonable and harmonious use of natural gifts, but, unfortunately, we are seeing a different trend in the development of this area.

Why is this happening? Why does the role of ecology in the lives of many people still remain in the background? Any external problem is only a reflection of human consciousness. Most people are not even aware of what is hidden behind the results of their daily life activities.

Aspects of nature affected by anthropogenic factors

The sharp increase in consumer lifestyle has led to unwise use of natural resources. The rapid development of scientific and technological progress, the large-scale growth of human agricultural activity - all this has aggravated the negative impact on nature, which has led to a serious disruption of the ecological situation on the entire planet. Let's consider the main natural aspects that are most susceptible to environmental crisis.

Air

Once upon a time there was a different atmosphere on Earth, then it happened that oxygen appeared on the planet, and after it aerobic organisms formed, that is, those that feed on this gas.

Absolutely all aerobic creatures depend on oxygen, that is, on air, and our life activity depends on its quality. Everyone knows from school that oxygen is produced by plants, therefore, given the current trend of deforestation and the active growth of the human population, it is not difficult to guess what the destruction of fauna leads to. But this is only one of the aspects affecting the state of the atmosphere of our planet. In reality, everything is more complicated, especially in large populated cities, where, according to medical standards, the concentration of toxic substances is tens of times higher.

Water

The next equally important aspect of our life is water. The human body consists of 60–80% water. 2/3 of the entire earth's surface consists of water. Oceans, seas, and rivers are constantly being polluted by humans. Every day we “kill” the world’s oceans with oil production in offshore fields. Oil spills threaten the lives of marine life. Not to mention the garbage islands continuously drifting across the surface of the oceans and seas.

Fresh water is most vulnerable to human ignorance. Sewage, various toxins such as mercury, lead, pesticides, arsenic and many other “heavy” chemicals poison rivers and lakes every day.

Earth

The main foundation of life on earth is soil. It is known that in order for the Earth to create one centimeter of black soil, it will take about 300 years. Today, on average, one centimeter of such fertile soil dies in three years.

Climate

The combination of all environmental problems leads to climate deterioration. Climate can be compared to the health of the planet. When individual “organs” of the Earth suffer, this has a direct impact on the climate. For many years now we have been observing various anomalies due to climate change, the causes of which are the anthropogenic factor. Human intervention in the activities of nature has led to sudden warming or cooling in certain areas, rising sea levels due to the rapid melting of glaciers, abnormal amounts of precipitation or its absence, as well as severe natural disasters and much more.

The main thing is not focusing on the list of problems, but understanding the reasons for their occurrence, as well as concentrating on effective ways and means of solving them.

Areas of our lives affected by ecology

What is the role of ecology in human life? As for absolutely everything that we all deal with every day, every second of our lives; without which life, such as it is now, could not exist?

Health

Health is like a constructor, on whose individual parts its condition as a whole depends. There are many such factors, the main ones are known to everyone - this is the lifestyle, nutrition, human activity, the people around him, as well as the environment where he lives. Ecology and human health are closely interconnected. If there are violations on one side, the other reacts accordingly.

A person living in a city is many times more likely to develop a serious illness than a person living in the suburbs.

Nutrition

When a person eats incorrectly, his metabolism is disrupted, which in turn leads to more serious health problems. It is worth remembering that these disorders can also affect future generations.

The main problem for human health is chemicals, mineral fertilizers, pesticides that are used to treat agricultural fields, as well as the use of additives and dyes to improve the appearance of products, preservatives to increase the shelf life of products, and much more.

There are known cases of adding compounds of heavy metals and other elements unfavorable to the human body, such as mercury, arsenic, lead, cadmium, manganese, tin and others.

Poultry and cattle feed contains many toxins that can cause cancer, metabolic failure, blindness and other serious diseases.

To protect yourself and your loved ones, you need to be careful about the products you buy. Study the composition and symbols printed on the packaging. Do not support manufacturers who are indifferent to your fate and the state of our planet. Pay special attention to E-supplements with three-digit numbers, the meaning of which can easily be found on the Internet and thereby live a longer and happier life.

Vital activity and mood

The state of health and quality of nutrition are the determining factors of human activity and vitality. As we see, all these factors can be associated with the state of ecology on our planet, on which we directly depend. Leading a healthy lifestyle, practicing yoga and self-knowledge, it is simply impossible to be indifferent to the environment. When we are in nature, breathing fresh air, eating clean, home-grown food, our life changes its quality. The state of mind is also transformed, which harmonizes the mood and attitude towards life in general.

Karma

Everything in this world is natural; everything we do, one way or another, comes back to us, immediately or later - it doesn’t matter. If we take care of ourselves and the world where we now live, save resources, think about nature, live according to our conscience, then the environmental situation on the planet will improve - and we will not have to pay for our own recklessness and inattention.

Live consciously, eat healthily - only natural products, - take care of waste disposal and recycling, use the essentials - then your life and the life of our entire planet will improve! Great things start from small things!

Ecology (from Greek. oikos - house and logo- doctrine) - the science of the laws of interaction of living organisms with their environment.

German biologist is considered the founder of ecology E. Haeckel(1834-1919), who first used the term in 1866 "ecology". He wrote: “By ecology we mean the general science of the relationship between an organism and the environment, which includes all “conditions of existence” in the broad sense of the word. They are partly organic and partly inorganic in nature.”

This science was originally biology, which studies populations of animals and plants in their environment.

Ecology studies systems at a level above the individual organism. The main objects of its study are:

• population - a group of organisms belonging to the same or similar species and occupying a certain territory;
• , including the biotic community (the totality of populations in the territory under consideration) and habitat;
• - area of ​​distribution of life on Earth.

To date, ecology has gone beyond the scope of biology itself and has turned into an interdisciplinary science that studies the most complex problems of human interaction with the environment. Ecology has traveled a difficult and lengthy path to understanding the “man-nature” problem, relying on research in the “organism-environment” system.

The interaction of Man with Nature has its own specifics. Man is endowed with reason, and this gives him the opportunity to realize his place in nature and purpose on Earth. Since the beginning of the development of civilization, Man has been thinking about his role in nature. Being, of course, part of nature, man created a special habitat, which is called human civilization. As it developed, it increasingly came into conflict with nature. Now humanity has already come to the realization that further exploitation of nature may threaten its own existence.

The urgency of this problem, caused by the worsening environmental situation on a planetary scale, has led to "greening"- To the need to take into account environmental laws and requirements- in all sciences and in all human activity.

Ecology is currently called the science of man’s “own home” - the biosphere, its characteristics, interaction and relationship with man, and man with the entire human society.

Ecology is not only an integrated discipline where physical and biological phenomena are connected, it forms a kind of bridge between the natural and social sciences. It is not one of the disciplines with a linear structure, i.e. It does not develop vertically - from simple to complex - it develops horizontally, covering an ever wider range of issues from various disciplines.

No single science is capable of solving all the problems associated with improving the interaction between society and nature, since this interaction has social, economic, technological, geographical and other aspects. Only integrated (generalizing) science, which is what modern ecology is, can solve these problems.

Thus, from a dependent discipline within biology, ecology has turned into a complex interdisciplinary science - modern ecology- with a pronounced ideological component. Modern ecology has gone beyond the boundaries of not only biology, but also in general. The ideas and principles of modern ecology are ideological in nature, therefore ecology is connected not only with the sciences of man and culture, but also with philosophy. Such serious changes allow us to conclude that, despite more than a century of environmental history, modern ecology is a dynamic science.

Goals and objectives of modern ecology

One of the main goals of modern ecology as a science is the study of basic laws and the development of the theory of rational interaction in the “man - society - nature” system, considering human society as an integral part of the biosphere.

The main goal of modern ecology at this stage of development of human society - to lead Humanity out of the global environmental crisis onto the path of sustainable development, in which the satisfaction of the vital needs of the current generation will be achieved without depriving future generations of such an opportunity.

To achieve these goals, environmental science will have to solve a number of diverse and complex problems, including:

• develop theories and methods for assessing the sustainability of ecological systems at all levels;
• explore the mechanisms of regulation of population numbers and biotic diversity, the role of biota (flora and fauna) as a regulator of the stability of the biosphere;
• study and create forecasts of changes in the biosphere under the influence of natural and anthropogenic factors;
• assess the state and dynamics of natural resources and the environmental consequences of their consumption;
• develop methods for managing environmental quality;
• to form an understanding of the problems of the biosphere and the ecological culture of society.

Surrounding us living environment is not a disorderly and random combination of living beings. It is a stable and organized system that developed in the process of evolution of the organic world. Any systems can be modeled, i.e. it is possible to predict how a particular system will react to external influences. A systems approach is the basis for studying environmental problems.

The structure of modern ecology

Currently, ecology divided into a number of scientific branches and disciplines, sometimes far from the original understanding of ecology as a biological science about the relationship of living organisms with the environment. However, all modern trends in ecology are based on fundamental ideas bioecology, which today represents a combination of various scientific directions. So, for example, they distinguish autecology, exploring the individual connections of an individual organism with the environment; population ecology, dealing with the relationships between organisms that belong to the same species and live in the same territory; synecology, which comprehensively studies groups, communities of organisms and their relationships in natural systems (ecosystems).

Modern ecology is a complex of scientific disciplines. Basic is general ecology, studying the basic patterns of relationships between organisms and environmental conditions. Theoretical ecology explores the general patterns of the organization of life, including in connection with the anthropogenic impact on natural systems.

Applied ecology studies the mechanisms of human destruction of the biosphere and ways to prevent this process, and also develops principles for the rational use of natural resources. Applied ecology is based on a system of laws, rules and principles of theoretical ecology. The following scientific directions are distinguished from applied ecology.

Ecology of the biosphere, studying global changes occurring on our planet as a result of the impact of human economic activity on natural phenomena.

Industrial ecology, studying the impact of enterprise emissions on the environment and the possibilities of reducing this impact by improving technologies and treatment facilities.

Agricultural ecology, which studies ways to produce agricultural products without depleting soil resources while preserving the environment.

Medical ecology, which studies human diseases associated with environmental pollution.

Geoecology, studying the structure and functioning mechanisms of the biosphere, the connection and interrelation of biosphere and geological processes, the role of living matter in the energy and evolution of the biosphere, the participation of geological factors in the emergence and evolution of life on Earth.

Mathematical ecology models environmental processes, i.e. changes in nature that can occur when environmental conditions change.

Economic ecology develops economic mechanisms for rational use of natural resources and environmental protection.

Legal ecology develops a system of laws aimed at protecting nature.

Engineering ecology - A relatively new direction of environmental science, it studies the interaction of technology and nature, the patterns of formation of regional and local natural-technical systems and methods of managing them in order to protect the natural environment and ensure environmental safety. It ensures compliance of equipment and technology of industrial facilities with environmental requirements

Social ecology arose quite recently. Only in 1986 did the first conference dedicated to the problems of this science take place in Lvov. The science of “home”, or the habitat of society (person, society), studies the planet Earth, as well as space - as the living environment of society.

Human ecology - part of social ecology, which considers the interaction of man as a biosocial being with the world around him.

- one of the new independent branches of human ecology - the science of quality of life and health.

Synthetic evolutionary ecology- a new scientific discipline, including particular areas of ecology - general, bio-, geo- and social.

A brief historical path to the development of ecology as a science

In the history of the development of ecology as a science, three main stages can be distinguished. First stage - the origin and development of ecology as a science (until the 1960s), when data on the relationship of living organisms with their habitat was accumulated, the first scientific generalizations were made. During the same period, the French biologist Lamarck and the English priest Malthus for the first time warned humanity about the possible negative consequences of human influence on nature.

Second phase - formalization of ecology into an independent branch of knowledge (after the 1960s to the 1950s). The beginning of the stage was marked by the publication of works by Russian scientists K.F. Roulier, N.A. Severtseva, V.V. Dokuchaev, who first substantiated a number of principles and concepts of ecology. After Charles Darwin's research in the field of evolution of the organic world, the German zoologist E. Haeckel was the first to understand that what Darwin called the “struggle for existence” represents an independent field of biology, and called it ecology(1866).

Ecology finally took shape as an independent science at the beginning of the 20th century. During this period, the American scientist C. Adams created the first summary on ecology, and other important generalizations were published. The largest Russian scientist of the 20th century. IN AND. Vernadsky creates a fundamental doctrine of the biosphere.

In the 1930-1940s, the English botanist A. Tansley (1935) first put forward concept of "ecosystem", and a little later V. Ya. Sukachev(1940) substantiated a concept close to him about biogeocenosis.

Third stage(1950s - to the present) - the transformation of ecology into a complex science, including the sciences of protecting the human environment. Simultaneously with the development of the theoretical foundations of ecology, applied issues related to ecology were also being resolved.

In our country, in the 1960-1980s, almost every year the government adopted resolutions to strengthen nature protection; Land, water, forest and other codes were published. However, as the practice of their use has shown, they did not give the required results.

Today Russia is experiencing an environmental crisis: about 15% of the territory is actually an environmental disaster zone; 85% of the population breathe air polluted significantly above the MPC. The number of “environmentally caused” diseases is growing. There is degradation and reduction of natural resources.

A similar situation has developed in other countries of the world. The question of what will happen to humanity in the event of degradation of natural ecological systems and the loss of the biosphere’s ability to maintain biochemical cycles is becoming one of the most pressing.