Question

What is meant by ecosystem resilience? What can cause it to fail? How does this relate to environmental tipping points?

Short answer

Ecosystem resilience is the ability of an ecosystem to resist and recover from disturbances. It can fail due to reasons like pollution, habitat destruction, invasive species, overexploitation of resources and climate change. This concept is closely related to environmental tipping points which are thresholds beyond which the ecosystem cannot recover and undergoes irrevocable changes.

Step-by-step solution

Understanding Ecosystem Resilience

Ecosystem resilience refers to the capacity of an ecosystem to resist damage and recover quickly after disturbances. In essence, it's the ecosystem's ability to bounce back after experiencing changes, while maintaining its essential functions and structure.

Causes of Ecosystem Resilience Failure

Ecosystem resilience can fail due to several factors, such as environmental pollution, habitat destruction, introduction of invasive and alien species, overexploitation of resources, and climate change. These disturbances can damage the ecosystem, thereby reducing its ability to recover.

Relationship between Ecosystem Resilience and Environmental Tipping Points

Environmental tipping points are thresholds whereby even minor changes can cause the ecosystem to shift radically into a fundamentally different state. A resilient ecosystem can absorb these disturbances up to certain thresholds, but beyond these thresholds (tipping points), it may not recover, leading to its irrevocable changes. Thus, ecosystem resilience and environmental tipping points are closely related: the higher the ecosystem resilience, the further the tipping point is.