Interactions of the terrestrial and aquatic agro-eco system each, please.
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The gravitational movement of materials in drainage waters from terrestrial ecosystems to aquatic ecosystems is the major land-water linkage in the biosphere. ... Movement of some airborne pollutants from terrestrial to aquatic ecosystems is increasing and must be considered as a factor influencing aquatic ecosystems.
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An ecosystem is generally accepted to be an interacting system of biota and its associated physical environment. Ecologists tend to think of these systems as identifiable at many different scales with boundaries selected to highlight internal and external interactions. In this sense, an aquatic ecosystem might be identified by the dominance of water in the internal structure and functions of an area. Such systems intuitively include streams, rivers, ponds, lakes, estuaries, and oceans. Most ecologists and environmental regulators also include vegetated wetlands as members of the set of aquatic ecosystems, and many think of groundwater aquifer systems as potential members of the set. “Aquatic and related terrestrial ecosystems” is a phrase that recognizes the impossibility of analyzing aquatic systems absent consideration of the linkages to adjacent terrestrial environments.
The inclusion of “related terrestrial ecosystems” for this study is a reflection of the state of the science that recognizes the multitude of processes linking terrestrial and aquatic systems. River ecologists have long understood the important connections between rivers and their floodplains (Junk et al., 1989; Stanford et al., 1996). The inflows of water, nutrients, and sediments from surrounding watersheds are heavily influenced by conditions within the floodplain. Conversely, floodplain plant and animal habitat value and sediment supply and fertility are often determined by river hydrology. This same sort of relationship between terrestrial and aquatic system is now understood to influence many of the functions of wetlands that motivate management efforts (Wetzel, 2001). Wetland ecologists have debated for years about appropriate recognition of capacity and opportunity to perform functions when conducting assessments of wetlands. A classic example of the discussion focuses on two identical wetlands, one in a pristine forested landscape, and the other in an intensely developed landscape. Both are assumed to have equivalent internal capacities to sequester pollutants, modify nutrient loads, and provide habitat, but the surrounding conditions mean that the opportunity for these functions to occur will differ significantly.
For many of the ecosystem functions and derived services considered in this chapter, it is not possible, necessary, or appropriate to delineate clear spatial boundaries between aquatic and related terrestrial systems (see Box 3-1). Indeed, to the extent that there is an identifiable boundary, it is often dynamic in both space and time. Floods, droughts, and seasonal patterns in rainfall are inte-
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