Summary Topic 5 ESS

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Topic 5




SOIL SYSTEMS AND FOOD PRODUCTION SYSTEMS
IVÁN DEZA




CBA |

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5.1. Introduction to soil systems
Parts
- Minerals: In living beings, dissolved in water, on earth or in the bedrock.
- Organic matter: In living beings or in their remains.
- Air: In small pockets between the earth particles.
- Water: In small pockets between the earth particles

It contains matter in all three states.

Uses:
- All food comes lately from the ground
- Soil is a habitat for many organisms.
- They accumulate resources such as minerals and nutrients.
- They filter the water, altering its chemistry.
- They accumulate and transmit heat, generating interactions between soil and air (sea
wind)

Soil as a system:
Tickets × Organic matter from the remains of living beings (leaf litter,
corpses...)
× Inorganic matter washed away by water
× Mother stone in meteorization
× Rainfall
Outputs × Evaporation
× Soil erosion
× Washing by water
× Organic matter taken by plants for their development
Reserves × Minerals, organic matter, gases, water (explained at the beginning)
Transfers × Washing: water drags nutrients and minerals to the bottom
× Evaporation: water drags nutrients and minerals upwards
Transformations × Decomposition
× Weathering
× Nutrient cycling




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